Free agent shooting guard Javonte Green signs one-year deal with New Orleans Pelicans, sources say Shams Charania of Athletic and StadiumTerms of the deal have not yet been released, but given the team’s precarious salary cap situation, it will likely be the veteran minimum contract.
Green, a 6-foot-4 wing from Radford, is one of the league’s top dunkers. After initially going undrafted in 2015, he played for international clubs in Spain, Italy and Germany before joining the Boston Celtics in 2019. His athleticism stood out and wasn’t initially dimmed by right meniscus surgery in 2020.
Green quickly emerged as the top acquisition for the Chicago Bulls in their three-team trade with Boston to acquire Daniel Theis and Green in March 2021. When the team returned to playoff caliber in 2021-22, Green quickly became a bona fide fan favorite, and his dunks fit right in alongside Slam Dunk Contest champions Zach LaVine and Derrick Jones Jr. The trio’s creativity and leaping ability around the post made them major television fixtures.
That said, Green has often been miscast in his most successful roles. NBA Bulls head coach Billy Donovan had to get creative with an incredibly thin frontcourt and often played Green at power forward.
Donovan expected Green’s impressive verticality to offset his major size and weight disadvantages against more traditionally sized fours. Green’s athleticism was somewhat muted defensively in such matchups. Eventually, he began racking up injuries. After suffering a right knee contusion in January 2023, Green underwent arthroscopic debridement to correct the problem. He would return in March, but would play sparingly.
Chicago didn’t retain Green in free agency last summer, so he joined the Golden State Warriors’ G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors, to begin the 2023-24 season. He signed a 10-day contract to return to Chicago in March, then committed to the lottery-bound Bulls for the remainder of the year. He had career-highs in points and rebounds with a 25-point, 13-rebound outburst in an April 5 win over the New York Knicks. With the Pelicans, he’s on the move again.
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In his five-year professional career, Green has played in 195 regular-season games (including 55 as a starter), averaging 5.4 points on .541/.345/.754 shooting, 3.1 rebounds, 0.8 steals and 0.7 assists per game. The 31-year-old had his most productive stretch last spring with Chicago, albeit in a limited number of games. In nine games (including five as a starter), Green has averaged 12.2 points on .600/.370/.769 shooting (that three-point field goal percentage comes on a solid 3.0 attempts), 7.4 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks per game.
Green will reunite with his former Celtics and Bulls teammate Theis in New Orleans. The 2.03m German signed a one-year, $2.8 million contract with the Pelicans earlier this summer.
The team acquired rookie center Yves Missi with the 21st pick in this year’s draft, added guard Antonio Reeves in a trade with the Orlando Magic and exercised club options on point guard Jose Alvarado and power forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl.
New Orleans also signed power forward Karlo Matkovic and added forward Trey Jamison off waivers.
But most importantly for the Pelicans, the club traded two first-round picks, forward Larry Nance Jr., guard Dyson Daniels, power forward EJ Liddell and center Cody Zeller to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for former All-Star guard Dejounte Murray. It was a drastic move designed to bolster the team’s defensive backfield.
Learn more: Hawks, Pelicans reach deal to send Dejounte Murray to New Orleans
New Orleans must now decide how to proceed with the futures of star forwards Brandon Ingram and Zion Williamson. It has long been rumored that after the rumors of a possible extension died down, the Pelicans would consider trading Ingram, a former All-Star.
It’s clear that Ingram and Williamson are a bit of an odd team. Given that New Orleans lost its starting center, Jonas Valanciunas, a deal to trade Ingram for a trade package that includes five starter-caliber players would seem to fit the Pelicans.
Learn more: Pelicans News: New Orleans looking to trade star after extension talks fail
