Song of Danny Green

A few years running before DeJuan Blair arrived in San Antonio there was a huge outcry amongst Spurs fans to provide Tim Duncan with inside help, mainly in the rebounding department. Though we never saw direct quotes, there where whispers that Timmy himself was growing a bit irritated with the front offices’ disregard for acquiring bigs who possessed this specialized skill set. Thanks to some faulty knees Dejuan fell into the Spurs lap and he has been a savior of sorts in this department, no doubt.

We Spurs fans were happy complainers when rebounding woes were solved and shooters seemed to be lacking. This was an all too simple lament though and the resolution was mirrored with an easy fix. In a couple of years the Spurs were loaded up with plenty of sharp shooters. So many that coach Pop’s favourite player became expendable. George Hill was, in essence, swapped for a player who, we hoped, would help solve our most recent of problems: defense.

The season is young and even greener is Kawhi, but few would argue that Kawhi possesses the rare harmonious make up that could eventually sing, shut down stopper. I for one am willing to bet that Kawhi will see an all-defensive team at least once before his career good and done.

You’ll notice a pattern here. Once the season is complete, the Spurs front office, just like us fans (no that’s backwards, is it?), evaluates the Spurs pitfalls. From there they go out and fill in the gaps. Given the Spurs perpetually late draft positions and limited cap space, the Spurs front office has always done a fantastic job with tinkering the roster to address major concerns. Need rebounds? Here is a rebounder. Three pointers you say? Here, take some shooters. Defense now? Best young stopper you could ask for. Very rarely though can a team in the Spurs position address multiple problems by way of one player.

Whether it be luck or due diligence (like most things in life it’s probably a mixture of both), the Spurs have found these gems before. Manu of course and Tony to a lesser extent. And in one fell swoop the Spurs have again answered a bevy of questions w

ith one. Danny Green is a cacophony of skill sets. He is athletic without being erratic. Posses a jumper but isn’t afraid to drive. Passes willingly despite honing that offensive equipment enough to grow a young man blinders. Attacks the offensive glass very aggressively without compromising defensive responsibility. And about that defense, he gets after it. Like it’s his only shot at making it in the association, like he can’t shoot a lick—low in his crouch, quick footed, strong, narrows his stare even. All league potential? That’s probably overstating it but quality starter on a good team? Yeah, I can see it, totally.

But my eye for talent isn’t as keen as some so if any of this isn’t enough to make you optimistic about his potential, how’s this: On multiple occasions Danny Green, shooting guard for the San Antonio Spurs, has been open. Wide open. Even called for the ball with some body language once, and Tony Parker, all world le point guard, looked him off like he’s done so many times to a common comforting face. It’s that kind of foretelling familiarity that allows me to sleep soundly at night and smile to the future.