charlotte hornets Guard Josh Green has provided a defensive boost since his return, although the team’s overall performance on that end of the floor hasn’t been nearly what head coach Charles Lee would like.

In his first two games this season, Green recorded three blocks and two steals while shooting an efficient 5/11 from the field and 4/7 from three-point territory. He’s never been known as a big scoring threat, but when he picks up the ball, he makes shots consistently.

As Grant Williams said after the win over the Toronto Raptors earlier in the week, Green does all the little things that tend to go unnoticed.

“Josh’s impact is often not reflected in the score. He does a phenomenal job just harassing guys, whether it’s full court or half court, or guarding guys off screens. Even on shots where they shoot difficult floaters, he’s right. You have to give him credit. I think he’s one of the best complementary guys in the league and he has a great opportunity with this team to be himself. I’m excited for him to be able to play his game and whether he makes a mistake or not, he’s just going to keep playing hard. “I’m really excited for him to get that opportunity and do his thing.”

When you have a creative player like LaMelo Ball running the offense, he will take chances with the ball and sometimes that will result in turnovers. He’s also a great shooter, and pairing him with another ball-dominant guard in the backcourt wouldn’t make much sense. You want LaMelo to handle the ball and create plays for himself and his teammates.

Green fits in very well because he has always taken good care of the rock and is a pass first, pass second and shoot third type of player. He has the confidence to make shots, but will do everything he can to help his teammates make plays before he makes them. Additionally, as Grant mentioned earlier, he is one of the best defensive players on the roster, which helps offset Ball’s vulnerability.

As much as Green contributes to the Hornets defensively, there may come a time when Tre Mann’s scoring ability is too much to keep him on the bench to start games. I think we put too much importance on who is in the starting lineup and who comes off the bench because minutes aren’t necessarily restricted when you’re not a starter.

However, the Hornets may want to start games with the powerful scoring trio of LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and Mann instead of waiting about five minutes before sending it to the scorer’s table.

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