Karin Abcarians
When Will Danny Green Snap Out of It?
The Los Angeles Lakers have been struggling in the NBA restart bubble. The offensive woes have been concerning, but perhaps the most concerning is shooting guard Danny Green missing 3-point shots he should be making. Other aspects of Green's play have been promising, showing he can get to the paint and score, as well as defend.
Green is well known for his sharpshooting. His career average from behind the arc is 40%. This season that average has gone down, not an incredibly massive drop, but it's now at 36.7%. For someone who's getting paid $30 million on a 2-year deal for a championship contender team, that number needs to be improved.
When the season started and the Lakers played the Clippers in their first game, Green scored 28 points and made 7 of 9 3-pointers. It was a glimpse of what Lakers fans hoped would be excellent sharpshooting all season. But, that has not been the case and we've seen inconsistent play from Green, including several games in which he scored 5 points or fewer.
In order for the Lakers to become more lethal and snap out of the offensive slump they're currently in, better performances from Green will help tremendously. For the Toronto Raptors last season he was an important piece to their championship team and averaged 45% from the arc. The Lakers need that version of him to ignite during the playoffs this year.
In the recent seeding game against the Houston Rockets, he scored 10 points. None of those points came from beyond the arc, but rather in the paint. He was 5 of 7 from the field.
If the shots from outside the arc aren't falling, it's time Green goes inside the paint more. In the seeding game against the Utah Jazz he was 4 of 7 from the field scoring 8 points and he missed the only 3-pointer he took. It's obvious getting to the paint is working for him more than his outside shot right now.
Shooters eventually shoot so much that they'll snap out of a slump, but when it's taking too much time, they need to find other ways to score. Get to the paint more, draw some fouls so you can get some free throws and so on. Judging from Green's comments, coach Frank Vogel is letting the players shoot and find their rhythm. It's a matter of time before Danny Green ignites into playoff form and starts making those 3-pointers, but for now we wait and see.