![]() If you're a general manager with cap money to spend, there are a couple of ways you could convince yourself that Green may not be worth that much. He's in elite company in so many different areas that it almost feels like a max deal is the only option. ![]() The more you look at Green' s comparisons-imperfect and forced as they necessarily are-the more a maximum contract looks like a foregone conclusion. If he gets the praise he's due in the form of a major award, what do his peers look like then? He's made the biggest cumulative impact on the NBA's best defense. What if Green wins Defensive Player of the Year? This is a not-at-all-ridiculous proposition, by the way Green leads the NBA in individual defensive rating and defensive win shares. If we remove the under-24 qualifier used above, here's the list of players who match Green's averages in those three easily understood areas this season: Maybe if we just revert back to basic numbers like points, rebounds and assists, we can get our bearings again. It's impossible to find a salary for a comparable player because no such player exists. How in the world do you put a dollar value on someone who, by at least one metric, is the best post defender in the league and holds point guards way below league-average productivity on the perimeter? Also: Among the 18 players who have defended at least 75 post-ups, no one has held their opponent to a lower payoff than Green (0.68 points per post-up). The league average on points per drive: 0.63. These stats from 's Tom Haberstroh come from early January, but they drive home the point that however good we think Green might be on defense, the truth is he's probably much, much better:Īccording to SportVU data provided to ESPN Insider, Green has defended 38 drives by point guards this season, and those 38 drives have resulted in a measly 15 points, for an average of 0.39 points per drive. Guessing at Green's worth with these comparisons is impossible.Īnother avenue: Let's focus on Green's floor-stretching prowess by isolating players who've hit at least 1.4 threes per game while grabbing at least eight rebounds this season. ![]() Noel is only half a season into his NBA career, and at 20, it's impossible to know what he might be worth down the line. ![]() How is this at all helpful? Is Green due the kind of money typically reserved for franchise centers? The fact that Cousins is the only guy in this group to have signed an extension makes this all the harder. Green doesn't belong here, alongside three imposing big men like this. We've got a generational superstar in Anthony Davis, a hulking interior force in DeMarcus Cousins and a potentially dominant defensive center in Nerlens Noel. This is an odd list-insofar as Green's on it. Players Averaging 1.4 Blocks and 1.5 steals in 2014-15 ![]()
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