Josh Green's Hot-Shooting Start Paying Dividends for Mavericks
Entering his third NBA season, Dallas Mavericks guard Josh Green knew his path to more minutes and a potential contract extension was to improve his outside shooting.
Drafted with the No. 18 pick in the 2020 NBA draft, Green came to Dallas with elite athleticism and stout defensive tools, but showcased a raw offensive skillset — specifically his shooting stroke. In his first two seasons, Green showed flashes of a nifty-passing touch on offense but shot just 31 percent from 3-point land, laying the groundwork for his 2022 offseason workout plan.
Through the first four games of the 2022-23 season, Green is shooting 80 percent from downtown, making 4-5 attempts. Now, is that on a super-small sample size? Sure, but it's a promising sample size. His stroke looks smooth, and the confidence is beaming as he is no longer hesitant to launch from deep.
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd raved about Green's offseason work, stating that the former Arizona Wildcat would now make team's “pay” when placing a big man on him.
“I was old so they did put the five (center) on me because I couldn’t move,” said Kidd of his own playing-day struggles. “Just being able to share that with him — that’s going to change, because he’s going to make them pay for it.”
Green's always been an intriguing prospect, as he creates havoc on the defensive end with his endless motor and activity. He has a knack for consistently cutting on offense and being in the right spot as well. But … when that right spot is an uncontested look from the corner, he has yet to consistently knock it down — until now.
Green finished Thursday night’s 129-125 overtime win over the Brooklyn Nets with 10 points on 3-3 shooting in 13 minutes off the bench. All of those makes were corner 3s.
For Green, teammates Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock can be seen as a blueprint for his development. The importance of having 3-and-D wings on an NBA roster is evident, especially when you share the floor with Doncic, who will generate countless open looks.
But with Green's underrated passing ability and elite athleticism added into the mix, he could one day surpass that mere role-player blueprint and become a starter for the Mavericks … as long as his 3-point stroke continues to improve.
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