Former North Babylon basketball star Danny Green is enjoying a solid season with the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs, and scored 14 points in Sunday’s 111-86 win over the Nets in Brooklyn.
Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich said Green’s success this season stems largely from a “mental transformation” the player has made.
“He always had a little bit of trouble focusing, being intense enough,” Popovich told Newsday. “He needed to approach it like he wanted to beat somebody out, that he wanted to get a job.”
The San Antonio head coach said the last time he cut Green he explained the reasons why and the areas Green had to work on to improve his game. Popovich also enlisted the help of Green’s college coach, North Carolina’s Roy Williams, to help get through to the player.
“I got coach Williams to help me double-team him and we smacked him around a little bit,” Popovich said. “When he came to camp this year, he was hell-bent for leather. He came to kick butt and he did it and he's had a great year. I'm really happy for him."
This season, Green has played in 50 games and is averaging 10.2 points per game. He is also leading the Spurs with 112 three-point field goals made.
