Third-year Houston Rockets guard Jalen Green earned praise from media observers for his recent play with the U.S. Select Team, and it appears the higher-ups with USA Basketball agree.
As part of Select Team duties, Green and other young NBA talents such as Detroit’s Cade Cunningham and Oklahoma City’s Chet Holmgren scrimmaged and practiced against the men’s senior national team as they prep for the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
With Cunningham operating as a point guard and lead ball-handler, Green worked in more of an off-ball capacity relative to his 2022-23 role with the Rockets. But Green appeared to thrive in that usage, and that could bode well for a 2023-24 season in which Green will line up in the backcourt with a new point guard in Fred VanVleet.
Grant Hill, formerly an NBA star and now managing director of the USA Basketball men’s national team, was impressed by Green’s play. Hill tells Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle:
He played well. He was one of the few guys that I had not seen in person. I obviously had seen him in highlights and on videos, even going back to high school. He’s dynamic. He’s explosive. He’s very confident.
A skilled and really talented player, he might not have been featured as much… but there were some moments. There were situations where you saw his gifts and his talents. It was very impressive.
How Jalen Green's time at USA Basketball camp paid off and earned praise from Grant Hill https://t.co/EOrMG01H2m via @houstonchron
— Jonathan Feigen (@Jonathan_Feigen) August 9, 2023
Hill pointed to the arrival of VanVleet and new head coach Ime Udoka as reasons to believe in the continued growth of Green, who might be in line for more U.S. national team work in the future.
“All of that, for a guy like Jalen, is a great chance for him to really grow,” Green told Feigen. “I think he’s ready, and that team is ready to take a step this season.” Read the complete interview here.
Jalen Green showing he can impact winning with and without the ball in his hands against Team USApic.twitter.com/pN96WjjVAc
— V̷a̷t̷o̷r̷ (@Vator_H_Town) August 5, 2023
