Willie Green was born on July 28, 1981. He is a US professional hoops coach and ex-player who is currently serving as the head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans in the NBA.
He played at the pro level in the NBA for many teams, including the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers, and Orlando Magic. Green was drafted in the second round as the 41st pick of the 2003 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics and later traded to the Philadelphia 76ers for the draft rights to other players and some money bonus.
Willie Green – Playing Career
Green graduated from Cooley High School in 1999. After playing college basketball at the University of Detroit Mercy, he was chosen by the Seattle SuperSonics in the 2003 NBA draft.
In the last 76ers game of the 2006–07 season, Green had a best career game 36 points against the Toronto Raptors in April 2007.
The next season was the most productive year of his league career. He was starting for the Sixers at the small guard position. During the 2007–08 NBA season, he had career highs in 74 games played, all of them as a starter. He played almost 27 minutes per game. He also had more than 12 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists in that 74 games. His field goal percentage was the best on the whole team and one of the better ones in the entire league.
Green was traded to New Orleans with small forward Jason Smith in exchange for the Lithuanian big guy Darius Songaila and rookie player Craig Brackins before the start of the 2010-2011 season. He lasted only one season with the team, but he liked the city and organization a lot which later influenced some of his decisions.
During the Christmas holidays in 2011, Green signed with the Atlanta Hawks. It was the rebuilding year for the Hawks organization in which they experimented with constant changes, and Green didn’t have a big role in that team.
In July 2012, Green was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers for the rights to promising Greek center Sofoklis Schortsanitis (nicknamed Baby Shaq). His first season in California looked promising. Green started several times and had a few nights with double digits. But season 2013-2014 was not as everyone expected. He couldn’t find his rhythm, and he lost his spot in the rotation.
In June 2014, he was waived by the Clippers after a series of minor injuries. Then, that same month, Green was claimed off waivers by the Orlando Magic. Green’s playing career came to an end after he played with Orlando during the 2014-15 season.
He played in 731 games during his career. Green knew his time was up when he was asked to try out for teams at the age of 34 against younger prospects in the summer of 2015.
Willie Green – Coaching Career
While Green was mainly a reserve for the Los Angeles Clippers from 2012 to 2014, Steve Kerr regularly would have long talks with Willie before games when he was working as a TV guy. Kerr was very impressed with Green’s game IQ and passion for the game. He had him in mind for a coaching position after becoming the Warriors’ head coach in 2014.
In the summer of 2016, Willie Green was hired by the Golden State Warriors coaching staff as an assistant coach.
He won his first championship when the Golden State beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games of the 2017 NBA Championship series. Coach Green won his second straight ring when the Golden State Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavs in the 2018 NBA Finals.
After the second championship, he was hired as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns under head coach Monty Williams.
After the 2020-2021 season, Green interviewed for head coach openings with the Pelicans, Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics, and Washington Wizards.
Willie Green was named head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans after the 2020-2021 season. Green became the eighth head coach in franchise history. In the past three seasons, the New Orleans Pelicans have missed the playoffs and have only been past the first round two times in organization history. New Orleans hopes to see from the new coach of a Pelicans young team that can reach the playoffs.
The Pelicans have had a long history of struggles but it seems like the young core is finally buying into Green’s system. If they manage to stay healthy and Zion Williamson is able to come back at the same level, the Pelicans might as well become one of the biggest dark horses and most entertaining teams to watch in the Western Conference.
That being said, it’s clear that they’re still a couple of years away from legit contention, and adding a couple of lottery picks to their already promising roster isn’t going to hurt them, either.
Who are the assistant coaches for the Pelicans?
The New Orleans Pelicans assistant coaches are Casey Hill, Fred Vinson, Teresa Weatherspoon, and player development coach Corey Brewer, Darnell Lazare, and Beno Udrih. Mike D’Antoni is also serving as an advisor and consultant for the coaching staff.
Who is Willie Green’s wife?
Pelicans head coach Willie Green is happily married to Terrah Green. Willie and Terrah Green have three children: Ross(21), Aaliyah (14), and Mason (9).
