Once the NBA players and owners are finally able to come to a resolution and end the lockout, the season will officially begin. Well prior to that, there will be a period of frenetic free agency action in order for teams to fill out their rosters. The Celtics have plenty of roster spots to fill, and one of those spots is likely to be filled by Jeff Green, either via the qualifying option that was picked up or an extension of some sort depending on the new CBA rules. Green recently spoke with Michael Lee of the Washington Post and touched upon a few subjects, including his love for the city of Boston:
On his free agent status and if he's stressed about where he ends up playing:
“I just want to play basketball, wherever it’s at. I love Boston and the city of Boston welcomed me with open arms when the trade happened. Boston is a great city.”
“Not at all. I have one of the best agents in the game, David Falk,” Green said. “He’s going to make sure I’m in a good position. He does his job and I do mine. I leave it up to him to try to make sure everything is intact when that time comes.”
On the lockout:
“I’ve dealt with it the best I can,” Green said in a phone interview. “I’ve tried to keep myself busy. I’m still trying to stay in the loop with things going on, but not letting it get to me. It’s tough to be in that position, to possibly be sitting out. But you just have to do what you have to do to make things happen and if it doesn’t, try to do things to take your mind off it and continue to work until you’re called back to work.”
On playing in an exhibition game with LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony and Chris Paul:
“That was crazy. I loved it,” Green said of the atmosphere in Baltimore two weeks ago. “I was just ready to have that opportunity during the summer to play against Carmelo, LeBron, Chris Paul all on the same team. It felt good to get some reps in against those guys. Those are guys I’m going to see a lot in the upcoming year. It was cool to get some run with them.”
Green is also slated to play in a DC area exhibition game as well as another Goodman League game in Indianapolis if the lockout isn't resolved by then. He's not worried at all about the risk of injury:
“That’s why I have insurance. I’m all taken care of, so I just go out there and play basketball. Hopefully, I go out there and play injury free. But I’m covered, so it’s all good.”
The Celtics will most likely retain Green for at least one more season but all of that could go out the window if the new CBA rules are drastically changed. As much scrutiny as there has been over a role player in Celtics history, he'll be a vital player for them next season if they plan on making one final run at banner #18. There's not much better out there in terms of players that can back up both Paul Pierce and Ray Allen (please, forget that 'Pierce coming off the bench' nonsense). Like him or not, the C's will need him to be more of the player he was in Game 2 against Miami when Pierce went down with a minor injury. The key will be retaining him at the right cost in terms of both dollars and years.
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