Green finds sense of comfort with Cavs
Jeff Green CLEVELAND — came to the Cleveland Clinic in January of 2012 so Dr. Lars Svensson could fix his damaged heart.
The following season, it was Boston Celtics assistant coach Tyronn Lue’s job to help Green get back to the formidable pro he was before Svensson saved his life.
Green, 31, a 6-foot-9 forward, signed a one-year deal for the league-minimum $2.3 million with the Cavaliers this offseason. He’ll get a chance to speak at the team’s media day Monday, where he might mention the opportunity to play for an NBA championship and alongside LeBron James as reasons he chose Cleveland.
But there is a certain level of personal and professional comfort here for Green. He’s playing for Lue, who might know him better than any coach in the NBA. And he’s back in the town where Svensson once stitched his heart back together.
Those are two sizable crutches on which Green can lean this year as he tries to rebound from the worst of his nine pro seasons.
“Having (Green) in Boston and him being like my project and who I had to work with all the time, I think it’s going to be a great fit for him,” Lue said. “And, I think he believes that too.
“For a guy of his caliber to come in for the minimum, when he could’ve gotten more money, that shows he has confidence and trust in me also, so I think it’s a great pickup for us.”
As Lue ruminates potential lineups and player rotations ahead of the start of training camp next week, Green is a fixture in his plans — either as a backup wing to James or a power forward off the bench. Lue views him as an above-average passer who moves well without the ball and has five years of playoff experience.
Butlastyear,Greenaveraged a career-low 9.2 points and 3.1 rebounds with the Orlando Magic, shooting a career-worst .394 from the field and .275 from 3-point range. He played on a oneyear, $15 million deal.
Lue talks with great confidence that Green will be more like the player who carries career averages of 13.5 points, 4.7 rebounds and a .333 3-point percentage, based apparently in part on the familiarity they share.
Lue was an assistant to Doc Rivers in Boston when Green was traded there in 2011. Green missed the entire 2011-12 season because of an aortic root aneurysm that was life-threatening.
Green worked his way back into basketball shape, with Lue personally assigned by Rivers to help him, and averaged 12.8 points with a .385 3-point percentage. The next season was his best as a scorer, averaging 16.9 points. Svensson, 62, is a Cavs fan. There was a game a few years ago in Cleveland when Green strode off the court with the Celtics. Svensson was seated near the tunnel used by the visitors, and he grabbed Green’s attention to congratulate him on the game and on his general return to health and to the court.
“He saw me, and then he came over and gave me a big hug,” Svensson said. “That was super.”
Two months after Green’s surgery, then-Boston teammate Chris Wilcox needed the same procedure for the same heart ailment. Svensson performed both.
Recalling Green’s condition at the time, the heart specialist said “when I saw his aorta and opening him up and saw how thin it was and it was translucent, my heart sort of skipped a beat.
“Thank goodness we were able to operate on him before something serious happened,” Svensson said. “I have no doubt things would’ve progressed rapidly with really serious consequences if he hadn’t had surgery.”
Svensson said he’s followed Green’s career since the procedure. When Green joined the Cavs and took his physical at the Cleveland Clinic, he sought out Svensson and asked if the two could take a picture.
Green has raised money for the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, donating a pair of his game shoes for auction.