As he made the walk from the American Airlines Center loading dock toward the locker rooms, Josh Green had a hard time not making the right turn into the Mavericks’ inner sanctum like he’d done hundreds of times before.
“Extremely weird walking by the locker room and going to the away locker room,” Green said. “I don’t know how to explain it. But it’s definitely weird.”
The affable Australian spent his first four NBA seasons with the Mavericks and became a key part of the rotation last year when they made their run to the NBA Finals.
Now, he’s with the Charlotte Hornets and has been a starter for them virtually all season. His role is different with his new team. He’s no longer one of the young guys who needed to be brought along by the veterans.
He’s an older member of a team that is rebuilding from the ground floor. And he’s embraced the challenges.
“It’s obviously been an adjustment, but I really like the direction where the front office is going,” Green said before the Mavericks played the Hornets at AAC. “It’s been really enjoyable. Like anything in life, with change, it takes time.
“It’s been different for me. Being a younger guy in Dallas and then to come here and being a veteran, it’s definitely been a shift. It’s fun. I’ve enjoyed it. Looking back at my time in Dallas, my first couple years were some of my really toughest times, not playing, not getting many minutes. Having guys like Dwight (Powell) and Maxi (Kleber) were great leaders for me. And it’s motivated me to be the best (mentor) I can be for guys.”
Green, who had seven points Thursday and got a nice ovation when he was introduced with the starting lineups and watched the Mavericks’ video tribute during a first-quarter timeout, has averaged 7.6 points and 28 minutes per game. He’s also shooting 40.1 percent from three-point range.
And his defensive chops are the same as he had when he was with the Mavericks, always going for loose balls and never afraid to get physical.
“Josh has been a joy to be around,” Hornets coach Charles Lee said. “He’s really elevated our organization and our group because of his daily approach. He’s been to the top of the mountain, to be in the Finals, so he understands what it takes to play playoff basketball, he knows what it takes to be a role player around other really good players and superstars, so he’s willing to just be a star in his role, whatever that asks for and he’s done that for our group.”
And, of course, the defense has been there.
“He’s added a defensive presence, which I think has kind of helped us with our defensive ratings and stuff because it becomes contagious when you see a guy that’s flying around the court to block a shot and then sprint back to the other end to get a dunk and then try to save a ball out of bounds,” Lee said. “He’s had some possessions and some sequences this year where I’ve just had to tell him man, it’s so fun watching you play basketball.”
Injury update: The Mavericks were without P.J. Washington on Thursday while recovering from a right ankle sprain.
That was in addition to Anthony Davis (left adductor strain), Dereck Lively II (right ankle stress fracture), Daniel Gafford (right knee) and Caleb Martin (hip) remaining on the shelf.
Said coach Jason Kidd of Washington: “Hopefully he can heal quickly and be ready to go on Saturday (against Milwaukee).”
Kidd also said that Davis continues to make headway and that a better idea of his progress should come soon.
“In conversations, he says he feels great,” Kidd said. “Hopefully he’s trending in the right direction and we’ll find out here shortly how everything’s going.”
10 more to go: Kessler Edwards was active for his 40th game this season, meaning he has 10 more that he can play for the Mavericks. The limit for players on a two-way contract is 50 NBA games in which they are on the active list.
“If P.J. could have gone tonight, we’d have sat him,” Kidd said. “Unfortunately, P.J. couldn’t go so we needed the body. We’ll see how our health goes the next couple weeks. If we can get healthy, then we’ll find a way to sit him. If not, he’s going to play.
“And he has 10 games left after tonight. We’ll play his games and kind of figure it out from there. If P.J.’s out, most likely Kessler will be in. But there’s got to be a point where we can get him a game or two off to kind of spread this thing out if we’re lucky enough to be healthy.”
X: @ESefko
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