<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">When the Sixers traded Eric Snow over the summer, several questions immediately arose. Were they gonna get another point guard? What were they gonna do with AI? Needless to say, none of those questions involved Willie Green. But maybe they should have: A second-year guard who raised eyebrows toward the end of last season, Green might very well man the shooting guard spot for the Sixers as Allen Iverson slides back to pg duties. An ?03 second-round pick from Detroit-Mercy, Green hit the L with little fanfare. He played inconsistent minutes for much of the early season as the team slow-dragged through injury-plagued, uninspired games. After the All-Star break, with Philly in striking distance of a playoff berth but lacking healthy bodies to get them there, Green?s name was called. Displaying a knack for hitting tough shots, he showed promise with a rugged all-around game. ?I?ve always been a combo-guard,? he says. ?I was taught to be able to dribble, get to the hole, shoot and pass.? An AP honorable mention All-American as a senior, Green was named Horizon League Player of the Year in ?02-03, when his 23 ppg was good enough for 11th in the nation. Acquired in a Draft-day trade with Seattle, he impressed Sixers brass enough to earn a spot on the team. He drew praise last season from Sixers? coaches and players in spite of a modest 6.9-ppg average, but as is often the case, the numbers don?t tell the whole story. Much of his scoring was done with the vets on the pine, meaning the 6-4 Green was often the primary scoring threat. He responded with games like the 19 (on 8 of 15 shooting) he dropped on Dallas in late March, the 18 he put on Seattle a few days later, and a pair of 20-plus efforts in the final weeks of the season. Knowing the free pass he rode in on last season was due to the element of surprise, this year will be the true test of whether Green really belongs in the L. ?They have diehard fans here,? he says. ?They want a winning team. They want their players to play well. Nobody puts as much pressure on me as myself. I want to earn that spot, so I?m not even coming in with a starting mentality. I?m coming in ready to take my spot.?</div> Full Article Courtesy of Kaalid Salaam/SLAMOnline.com As featured in SLAM #83
