BOSTON -- Before logging one of his nine December DNPs last week in Indiana, Gerald Green spent pregame warmups playing a vigorous game of one-on-one against rookie Demetrius Jackson, a player the Boston Celtics recalled from the D-League, if only because he grew up in the area and it was a chance to visit friends and family while the Maine Red Claws were idle.
In a nearly empty gymnasium, the 30-year-old Green, the oldest player on Boston's roster, was dripping sweat as he jab-stepped and pump-faked his way to layups against the 22-year-old rookie. From the baseline, Celtics strength and conditioning coach Bryan Doo captured video of the one-on-one battle and later posted it to his Instagram account.
Despite being admittedly frustrated by both a hip injury that has left him playing catchup since training camp and an inability to consistently crack coach Brad Stevens' rotation, Green kept putting in work in hopes that his opportunity would eventually arrive. Despite playing a mere 18 minutes in a month-plus span since Nov. 19, Green's call came on Christmas Day in New York, where he responded with an encouraging 12-minute performance.
That glimpse likely gave Stevens the confidence to go back to Green on Tuesday night against the Memphis Grizzlies. Green responded by scoring a season-high 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting over 19 minutes and displaying the "spurtability" that Stevens gushed about after the Celtics inked Green to a one-year, minimum-salary contract this summer.
It was the first time Green scored 19 points in a Celtics uniform since April 13, 2007 -- three months before he was traded to Minnesota as part of the package that brought Kevin Garnett to Boston. That deal helped Boston net Banner 17, while Green set sail on a basketball odyssey that sent him to Russia and back.
When Green checked out midway through the fourth quarter of Tuesday's 113-103 triumph over the Grizzlies, fans at TD Garden gave him a standing ovation, and the moment wasn't lost on Green.
"I never had a standing ovation before, I don't think," Green said. "For me to have one at this day and age of my career, that was something special for me."
Green gave the Celtics a much-needed jolt in the second quarter. A pull-up jumper on fellow basketball octogenarian Vince Carter lit Green's fuse. He followed with a step-back 3-pointer and then, after getting Carter in the air on a pump-fake, added a 15-foot fadeaway from the free throw line. But the most absurd play of the stint came when Green grabbed an offensive rebound, dribbled through a defender to get back to the 3-point line, then wheeled and line-drived a 3-pointer that put Boston on top by double digits with 8:31 to play in the second quarter.
An inevitable heat-check followed, and Green briefly defended Marc Gasol on the other end of the floor. Although the Grizzlies made things interesting in the second half, Green was out on the court in key moments while Boston fended off Memphis' charge.
"[Green] just brought more intensity," second-unit point guard Marcus Smart said. "Things were sluggish out there, and you could feel the intensity change when he came into the game."
Celtics All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas, who briefly played with Green in Phoenix and was a strong proponent for bringing him to Boston this summer, knows a thing or two about scorers and likes the punch Green provides off the bench.
"He's one of the best scorers I've seen in the NBA. Whether it be practice or games, it only takes one shot for him to feel like he's on fire," said Thomas, who registered 20-plus points for the 16th consecutive time this season, the longest streak in the NBA. "[Green] can help us, really. Coach is pointing in his direction, and he took advantage of his opportunity the last few games that he's played. What he did today, that's what he does. I mean, he comes off the bench and gives a spark, and he gives us energy."
Green added five rebounds, a block and an assist to his stat line. His seven field goals were two more than his total in four other appearances this month. Stevens still must find time for rookie Jaylen Brown, the No. 3 pick in June's draft, who has endured the typical rookie roller coaster. But Green has a clear value to this team, if only because of his ability to score no matter when he is thrown into games.
Asked if he feels like he might finally be part of the rotation, Green sidestepped the question like a charging defender.
"I don't know, man," he said. "I'm just trying to stay ready at all times, man. It's all about being a professional."
The way Green has carried himself in this span hasn't been lost on Stevens.
"The one thing I've really been impressed with with Gerald, through the ups and downs of injuries and not playing, he's very consistent in his support of his team," Stevens said before Tuesday's game. "Not only there and quiet in the locker room, but also loud on the bench, active on the bench, and I knew that coming in. I had watched that pretty close in Miami last year, and things tend to work out when you've got that kind of spirit about you."
Green said Stevens didn't have to explain his decision to ride younger players earlier in the year, even as Boston battled injuries that could have created more playing time for Green.
"I think [Stevens] kind of knows I'll be ready," Green said. "I'm always kind of talking to the team. It's kind of like, I just have to do whatever I'm telling the team. I'm just trying to stay ready. I know it's a tough time because there are a lot of people on this team that can play, so there's always going to be someone who is unhappy. You know what I mean? You have to try to stay locked in, try to stay motivated and try to stay ready."
Added Green: "[The rotation is] coach's decision. That's why I'm glad he's the coach and I'm the player. Right now the most important thing is that we're winning games. Whatever rotation that he throws out there and keeps getting better as a unit and team, that's the most important thing. It doesn't matter who plays or not."