Willie Green facts for kids
Green with the Clippers in 2013
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| New Orleans Pelicans | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | July 28, 1981 Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
| High school | Cooley (Detroit, Michigan) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Detroit Mercy (1999–2003) |
| NBA Draft | 2003 / Round: 2 / Pick: 41st overall |
| Selected by the Seattle SuperSonics | |
| Pro career | 2003–2015 |
| Coaching career | 2016–present |
| League | NBA |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 2003–2010 | Philadelphia 76ers |
| 2010–2011 | New Orleans Hornets |
| 2011–2012 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 2012–2014 | Los Angeles Clippers |
| 2014–2015 | Orlando Magic |
| As coach: | |
| 2016–2019 | Golden State Warriors (assistant) |
| 2019–2021 | Phoenix Suns (assistant) |
| 2021–present | New Orleans Pelicans |
| Career highlights and awards | |
As player:
As assistant coach:
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William Julius Green (born July 28, 1981) is an American professional basketball coach. He is currently the head coach for the New Orleans Pelicans in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before becoming a coach, he was a player in the NBA. He played for teams like the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers, and Orlando Magic.
Willie Green was chosen in the second round of the 2003 NBA draft. The Seattle SuperSonics picked him as the 41st overall player. On the same night, he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers.
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Willie Green's Playing Career
Playing for the Philadelphia 76ers (2003–2010)
Willie Green graduated from Cooley High School in 1999. He then played college basketball at the University of Detroit Mercy. In the 2003 NBA draft, the Seattle SuperSonics picked him. However, he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers right away.
In 2005, Green was supposed to sign a new contract with the Sixers. But he got injured on the day of the signing. This made his contract status unclear for a while. He officially re-signed with the Sixers in March 2006. In April 2006, he played his first game back, scoring 9 points.
Green had a fantastic game on April 4, 2007. He scored a career-high 37 points against the Toronto Raptors. This was during the last game of the 2006–07 season.
During the 2007–08 NBA season, Green became the starting shooting guard for the Sixers. He played in 74 games that season, starting all of them. He also achieved his best numbers in minutes played, shooting percentage, rebounds, assists, and points. He averaged 12.4 points per game.
Playing for the New Orleans Hornets (2010–2011)
In September 2010, Willie Green was traded to the New Orleans Hornets. He moved there along with forward Jason Smith.
Playing for the Atlanta Hawks (2011–2012)
Green signed with the Atlanta Hawks in December 2011. He played for them during the 2011–12 season.
Playing for the Los Angeles Clippers (2012–2014)
In July 2012, Green joined the Los Angeles Clippers. He played for the Clippers for two seasons. He was released by the Clippers in June 2014.
Playing for the Orlando Magic (2014–2015)
After leaving the Clippers, Willie Green was picked up by the Orlando Magic in June 2014. He played his final NBA season with the Magic.
Willie Green's Coaching Career
Assistant Coach (2016-2021)
After his playing career, Willie Green became an assistant coach. In August 2016, he joined the coaching staff of the Golden State Warriors. He helped the Warriors win two NBA championships. They won in 2017 and again in 2018. Both times, they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals.
In June 2019, Green became an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns. He worked with the Suns for two seasons.
Head Coach of the New Orleans Pelicans (2021–Present)
On July 22, 2021, Willie Green was named the head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans. His first season as head coach started tough. The team had a record of 1 win and 12 losses at the beginning. However, Green helped turn the team around. They finished the season with 36 wins and 46 losses. This earned them a spot in the NBA play-in tournament.
The Pelicans then won against the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Clippers. This meant they made it to the playoffs for the first time since the 2017–18 season. In the first round of the playoffs, they played against the Phoenix Suns, Green's former team. The Pelicans lost to the Suns in six games.
The 2022–23 season started very well for Green and the Pelicans. They were tied for first place in the Western Conference in early 2023. However, key players like Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram got injured. This caused the team to struggle later in the season. They finished in ninth place in the Western Conference. They made the play-in tournament again but lost to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Despite the injuries, Green led the Pelicans to a winning record of 42 wins and 40 losses. This was his first winning season as a head coach.
In the 2023–24 season, the Pelicans finished with 49 wins and 33 losses. They made the playoffs again but lost in the first round. The 2024–25 season saw the Pelicans finish with 21 wins and 61 losses, missing the playoffs.
Awards and Honors
Willie Green received several awards during his college basketball career:
- Midwestern Collegiate Conference All-Newcomer Team: 2000
- Second Team All-Midwestern Collegiate Conference: 2001
- Horizon League Scoring Leader: 2003
- Horizon League All-Tournament Team: 2003
- All-Horizon First Team: 2003
- Horizon League Player of the Year: 2003
- Honorable Mention All-America by AP: 2003
- Portsmouth Invitational All-Tournament Team: 2003
Career Statistics
Here are some of Willie Green's basketball statistics from his playing career.
Regular Season Games
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003–04 | Philadelphia | 53 | 0 | 14.5 | .401 | .311 | .728 | 1.2 | 1.0 | .5 | .1 | 6.9 |
| 2004–05 | Philadelphia | 57 | 21 | 18.7 | .366 | .286 | .776 | 2.3 | 1.8 | .6 | .1 | 7.7 |
| 2005–06 | Philadelphia | 10 | 2 | 15.3 | .424 | .526 | .800 | 1.5 | .5 | .2 | .0 | 7.0 |
| 2006–07 | Philadelphia | 74 | 36 | 24.9 | .411 | .325 | .667 | 2.1 | 1.5 | .8 | .1 | 11.3 |
| 2007–08 | Philadelphia | 74 | 74 | 26.6 | .436 | .285 | .757 | 2.5 | 2.0 | .7 | .3 | 12.4 |
| 2008–09 | Philadelphia | 81 | 60 | 22.6 | .435 | .317 | .729 | 1.6 | 2.0 | .7 | .2 | 8.5 |
| 2009–10 | Philadelphia | 73 | 18 | 21.3 | .457 | .346 | .833 | 1.8 | 2.1 | .4 | .2 | 8.7 |
| 2010–11 | New Orleans | 77 | 13 | 21.7 | .443 | .348 | .780 | 2.1 | 1.0 | .5 | .2 | 8.7 |
| 2011–12 | Atlanta | 53 | 2 | 17.4 | .471 | .442 | .857 | 1.5 | .8 | .4 | .1 | 7.6 |
| 2012–13 | L.A. Clippers | 72 | 60 | 16.5 | .461 | .428 | .719 | 1.3 | .8 | .4 | .2 | 6.3 |
| 2013–14 | L.A. Clippers | 55 | 9 | 15.8 | .376 | .339 | .824 | 1.4 | .9 | .4 | .2 | 5.0 |
| 2014–15 | Orlando | 52 | 2 | 18.3 | .386 | .347 | .824 | 1.5 | 1.3 | .5 | .1 | 5.9 |
| Career | 731 | 297 | 20.2 | .425 | .346 | .765 | 1.8 | 1.4 | .5 | .1 | 8.3 | |
Playoff Games
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Philadelphia | 5 | 0 | 12.6 | .444 | .222 | .900 | 1.8 | .6 | .2 | .0 | 5.4 |
| 2008 | Philadelphia | 6 | 6 | 23.7 | .431 | .200 | .643 | 1.3 | 2.0 | .8 | .7 | 9.0 |
| 2009 | Philadelphia | 6 | 6 | 24.7 | .412 | .364 | .333 | 1.0 | 1.2 | .0 | .2 | 7.8 |
| 2011 | New Orleans | 6 | 0 | 14.0 | .389 | .222 | .571 | .8 | .7 | .3 | .0 | 5.7 |
| 2012 | Atlanta | 5 | 0 | 12.6 | .462 | .250 | .000 | 1.6 | .6 | .0 | .0 | 2.6 |
| 2013 | L.A. Clippers | 3 | 0 | 6.7 | .667 | .000 | 1.000 | 1.0 | .7 | .3 | .0 | 2.0 |
| 2014 | L.A. Clippers | 5 | 0 | 3.8 | .200 | .250 | 1.000 | 1.4 | .2 | .6 | .0 | 1.0 |
| Career | 36 | 12 | 15.0 | .418 | .256 | .711 | 1.3 | .9 | .3 | .1 | 5.2 | |
Head Coaching Record
| Regular season | G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win–loss % |
| Playoffs | PG | Playoff games | PW | Playoff wins | PL | Playoff losses | PW–L % | Playoff win–loss % |
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Finish | PG | PW | PL | PW–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Orleans | 2021–22 | 82 | 36 | 46 | .439 | 3rd in Southwest | 6 | 2 | 4 | .333 | Lost in first round |
| New Orleans | 2022–23 | 82 | 42 | 40 | .512 | 2nd in Southwest | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| New Orleans | 2023–24 | 82 | 49 | 33 | .598 | 2nd in Southwest | 4 | 0 | 4 | .000 | Lost in first round |
| New Orleans | 2024–25 | 82 | 21 | 61 | .256 | 5th in Southwest | — | — | — | — | Missed playoffs |
| Career | 328 | 148 | 180 | .451 | 10 | 2 | 8 | .200 | |||
See also
In Spanish: Willie Green para niños
