Apr 13, 2013; Orlando, FL, USA; Boston Celtics power forward Jeff Green (8) drives to the basket as Orlando Magic small forward Tobias Harris (12) attempted to defend during the second half at the Amway Center. Boston Celtics defeated the Orlando Magic 120-88. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

With the season dwindling down to an end, its a time for reflection. The Boston Celtics have had a very up and down year–slightly disappointing, even. They brought in a lot of firepower after losing Ray Allen but had their season derailed by injuries and inconsistency on both ends of the floor. The Celtics were a preseason favorite to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals and they were supposed to win the Atlantic division as well. A lot of pundits got it wrong.

One of the most hot topics in the offseason was Jeff Green re-signing with the Celtics. There was a lot of second guessing and speculation when it came to this move. It was fair to question because they gave Green a four year, 40 million dollar contract coming off of a heart surgery. He hadn’t played basketball in over a year. No one knew how healthy Green would be in his return. Its more than fair to say that standing by Green through this process was a noble gesture by the Celtics, but it was also a crap shoot.

For a while at the beginning of the season, it looked like the detractors of the deal were spot on. Not to say that Green was necessarily a bad player, but that he was being paid more than his worth. Green’s numbers before the turn of the year are pretty underwhelming. Green was only scoring 10 points per game on 41% shooting. He wasn’t able to find his niche in the defense either. He couldn’t guard power forwards because he was too small and he couldn’t guard small forwards because he was too slow.

It had gotten to a point where Green’s minutes started dwindling. From the beginning of the season to the turn of the calendar year, Green averaged 23.7 minutes per game as a reserve. Rivers was trying to bring him back in slowly to get him in a groove of sorts, but nothing seemed to be working.

It wasn’t until Rajon Rondo’s injury that Green really started to pick up his play. His minutes were boosted up to 31.2 minutes in February, 33.8 minutes in March and 35.6 minutes in March. Jared Sullinger’s injury had a lot to do with the minute increase, but Green’s production also bolstered as well.

Without Rajon Rondo driving and kicking, the Celtics had to lean on cutting and slashing the defense more frequently than in the past. The pick and pop was no longer the staple of the offense. Now Green’s ability to slash was showcased more than ever.

Green has averaged 16.6 points per game on 49.6% shooting since January 27th. Green is also shooting 41% from beyond the arch since then while taking 2.7 shots per game from there.

Green earned a starting position earlier this month because of his play. He’s had a 43 point game, three 30+ point games and 10 20+ point games since January 27th. While that is very inspiring, it should be noted that that is less than 1/3 of the games that Green has played. And we should also note that he has a usage percentage of only 22.1%. Green doesn’t take a lot of shots and averaged 33.2 minutes per game in that stretch.

Green started the year off slowly, but that should be expected coming off of heart surgery. The question here is which sample do we use? We’ve never seen this kind of play out of Jeff Green–even in his Oklahoma City days he wasn’t this good. When deciding which sample to use, normally you’d go with whatever is closer to the median. That would be the first half of Green’s season in this case.

The second half of the season should be acknowledged, but Green has got to prove himself for more than a 37 game stretch to say that he’s lived up to his contract. He’s played very well, but the Celtics aren’t paying him for half of a season.

If he comes through in the postseason and helps carry the load then his late season success will have more validation than it does now, but the jury is still out on Green. We’ll find out which player he really is soon.

Mar 17, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant (35) with guard Russell Westbrook (0) during the game against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports

There has been much debate since February of 2011 on whether the trade that sent Kendrick Perkins to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Jeff Green, who ended up with the Boston Celtics, was the right move. However, while that trade has always been seen from Boston’s perspective locally, no one has delved into Oklahoma City’s side of the deal. Over two years later, Jeff Green has found his place with the Celtics, and has won a few games for them as the playoffs are right around the corner. For the Thunder, Kendrick Perkins didn’t pan out or match the numbers he was putting up with the Celtics. Did Oklahoma City get the worst end of the trade? Did they make the same mistake when they traded James Harden?

The Thunder are currently second in the Western Conference standings and well on their way to another deep playoff run. But there is one player who plays for Oklahoma City that could once again negate their chances of winning a title. Russell Westbrook. This is where arguments can be made, but Westbrook cannot, and has not coexisted with Kevin Durant. Sunday’s game against the New York Knicks was a prime example. Westbrook finished with 37 points 11 rebounds and 8 assists. While those are tremendous numbers for a point guard, he’s taken away too much from Durant’s game as Durant is not getting the ball when he’s most effective, which is late in games.

This has happened plenty of times before. Westbrook turns into a shooting guard at the wrong time and plays selfish, hero-like basketball, which on multiple occasions has lost a few games for the Thunder because of that. Now, I’m not taking anything away from Westbrook, but it’s not his team, it’s Durant’s. Durant is the player who should have the ball in his hands late in games, not Westbrook. This discussion can be endless, so without continuously beating a dead horse, I move on.

Before this season began, the Oklahoma City Thunder traded James Harden to the Houston Rockets. Again, the Thunder got the worst end of the trade. Harden has stepped up and has become a leader, which he wouldn’t have become if he was still in Oklahoma City. Houston is now playoff bound because of Harden. But was letting him go a big mistake on the part of the Thunder? Once again, I’m saying yes. Had they given the money they spent on Westbrook to Harden, and turned around to trade Westbrook for a real point guard, Oklahoma City would be much better. This is a strong accusation on my part, but the results don’t lie. Harden wasn’t getting in Durant’s way and neither was Jeff Green. Yes, I’ve brought him back into the picture.

The Big Three of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Jeff Green was enough to win championships for years to come. But that will never be known after the trades split the trio apart. Now Oklahoma City has two superstars who don’t compliment each other in certain situations of a game, especially late in the fourth quarter. Sure, they’re winning games and could go deep into the playoffs, but they won’t overcome the obstacles known as the San Antonio Spurs or Miami Heat.

In the final analysis, there is one other side to this ordeal. Would Jeff Green and James Harden be as good as they are today if they were still playing for the Thunder? I truly believe the combination of Durant and Green would have been a dominant force in the front court. The length of both players would have caused matchup problems, which is exactly whats happening in Boston as Paul Pierce and Green have become a force to be reckoned with. Harden on the other hand was in the shadow of Durant and Westbrook, and didn’t fully shine in his time with the Thunder. His game is better suited with the Rockets as he’s become the superstar, the go-to-guy, the player who his team looks to late in games. He’s averaging 25.8 ppg which is almost 9 points more than what he’s been averaging throughout his career.

The Thunder ultimately made the mistake by letting two great players go and keeping a point guard who would be better if he lead a team on his own like Derrick Rose with the Chicago Bulls. Oklahoma City may return to the Finals this season, but they’re not as good as they once were, or could have been today.

Mar 27, 2013; Cleveland, OH, USA; Boston Celtics power forward Jeff Green (8) celebrates his game-winning layup against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

We’ve all seen it before Paul Pierce dribbles at the top of the key, runs out the shot clock and takes a stepback jumper at the elbow. It’s become so predictable and unsuccessful that in any clutch situation I see at least 20 “No ISO PIERCE” tweets streaming down my timeline. Not to say Paul has lost his “clutch gene” or anything but a lot of the lift that he use to have in that jumper is now gone and it’s time for Doc to rely on someone else, someone like…….Oh I don’t know maybe Jeff Green?

I know what you’re thinking “Jeff can’t replace Paul!” and “Paul has hit so many game winners” but I’m not saying Jeff is going to replace Paul in the lineup or any nonsense like that just that Green can now step into the role that Paul may have outgrown. For his entire career Paul has been regarded as one of the best clutch shot makers in the league. He was one of the few very select people in the league who you really didn’t have to draw up a specific play for because you knew that he was going to get a great look. Athleticism never being a huge part of his game Paul has relied on savant like footwork and while that amazing footwork is still there you can tell Paul has lost a step. He can’t get to his spots as quick as he used to and like a I said before a lot of the lift in his jumper disappeared. This year Paul is shooting 43% in the ast 5 minutes of games within 5 pts, 35% in the last 1 minutes and 18% in the last 10 seconds of games.

While Jeff has never been tagged as having the supposed “clutch gene” he’s been phenomenal this year when it has counted. According to nba.com/stats Jeff is shooting a fantastic 53% in the last 5 minutes of games with the score within 5pts(Pretty good for a guy coming off Heart Surgery). He’s also already had two game winners this season let’s take a look at them.

The video above is of Jeff’s first gamewinner against Indiana. It featured one of the best out of timeout plays I’ve ever seen Doc draw up. It was simple(but very effective) misdirection play that had Pierce make the defense think he was posting up but instead screening Jeff’s man which freed him along the baseline for a difficult catch and finish.

This next video is one of Jeff’s most recent clutch exploits against Cleveland. This play had Jeff initially screen Terry’s man who then screened Jeff’s man which freed up the lane for the gamewinning layups.

Now these plays aren’t flashy like a stepback  jumper but they’re precise and effective. They’re the type of plays that can catch a defense off guard and win you a game. And you don’t have to completely phase Paul out since he can still be used as a very effective decoy as evidenced in the Indy game. While Paul hasn’t exactly been super efficient in clutch situations he is still one of the leagues better playmakers in the league averaging 8.8 assists per 48 minutes of “clutch time” though as to not completely dissolve his role in the team.

Jeff is no Michael Jordan but he has been very good this season in the clutch. He’s going to be a huge part of this team in the foreseeable future so why not acclimate him to the role he’ll eventually fill, right now?

You can follow me on Twitter @TreyAdell for Celtics/NBA related tweets!