NBA Rumors Gerald Green to New Jersey Nets: Is He the Next Jeremy Lin?

Clearly DeShawn Stevenson wasn’t working for the New Jersey Nets filling in at small forward. He was averaging 3.0 points per game before the Nets realized something wasn’t right. 

The names Ronaldo Balkman and Andre Emmett were coming up in talks, but New Jersey finally decided to bring Gerald Green up from the D-League and hand him a spot. 

Green hasn’t played in the NBA since 2009 and hasn’t played a full season since 2007 when he averaged 10.4 points per game for the Boston Celtics. But after being traded to Minnesota and then Houston, Green lost his stride. 

He is averaging 19.1 points and 4.6 rebounds per game for the Los Angeles D-Fenders. Green is shooting 46 percent from the three-point arc. He had a fabulous 28-point performance in the All-Star game and was named the D-League All-Star Game MVP. 

Many Nets fans are excited about this signing, myself included. Green is an entertainer more then he is a basketball player. This former Slam Dunk Contest champion can inject some life into a dying fan base. 

New Jersey Nets fans haven’t been excited in a long time, and if Green and Deron Williams can get some chemistry going expect New Jersey to turn into the new Lob City. 

Gerald Green is a playmaker, as shown by his victory in the 2007 NBA Slam Dunk Contest over the likes of Nate Robinson and Dwight Howard. He was highly touted coming out of high school and was a bright spark in the D-League. 

Gerald Green is going to fun to watch, and all he has to do is fill in the gaps. 

Now, all this chatter reminds me of a former D-Leaguer by the name of Jeremy Lin. Both Lin and Green were passed over by NBA teams. Both players are a rarity in the new NBA. Lin is an Asian-American baller and Green came into the league straight out of high school. 

Both of them are on an East Coast team that has just about given up hope. The New York Knicks were out of life itself until Jeremy Lin took them by the hand and crossed the Red Sea. His season-saving heroics now have Knicks fans looking up. 

The Nets are a team that has just about given up hope. Dwight Howard couldn’t come soon enough and Williams can’t win by himself. 

This is a franchise that needs something (anything!) to reaffirm faith in this team. 

That may come in the form of a Gerald Green rim-rattling dunk.