Colorado Prospect Spotlight: Jervay Green (2017)
Mired in a three-game losing streak in early December, George Washington players came together and made it clear there was one major thing they needed to correct to get the ship moving in the right direction. “We were struggling at…
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Continue ReadingMired in a three-game losing streak in early December, George Washington players came together and made it clear there was one major thing they needed to correct to get the ship moving in the right direction.
“We were struggling at the beginning of the season, and there were several reasons, but defense was the biggest one,” George Washington junior swingman Jervay Green said after the Patriots took down a quality Far Northeast Warriors team on Saturday. “We started turning that around, and we really came out and played defense today.”
Green, an athletic and skilled 6-foot-5 guard, was the catalyst. He sent the tone early with tenacious perimeter defense in the first quarter. He had three steals and three deflections in the first period alone, and continued to apply pressure throughout the game.
“The way were talking and moving around on the court it was great,” said Green, who has already garnered Division I attention.
The junior, who should be one of the key fixtures for the Colorado Hawks’ vaunted 17U squad this upcoming spring and summer, displayed a sound defensive approach on Saturday, creating havoc without taking chances by positioning himself into passing lanes and using his quick hands to be disruptive.
“I’ve worked on it a lot, through AAU and all that stuff,” Green said of his defense. “It’s complicated, but really I just read their eyes. Wherever their eyes go, that’s where I’m going to go.”
When Green is engaged and operating at a high level defensively, as he’s very capable of doing, it’s also when he is best at creating offense. He’s a very difficult player to handle in the open court because he has good pull-up game that extends past the 3-point line, he has good size on the attack, possesses good vision on the drive and can finish with good touch around the basket. He also brings a good element of toughness that is a calling card for the Patriots.
Entering Saturday, Green, the No. 8 2017 prospect in the Prep Hoops Colorado rankings, was averaging 13.5 points per game on a balanced team, shooting 51 percent from the field and 36 percent from 3-point range — all numbers he improved upon Saturday.
“Over the summer, and last year toward the end of the year, is when I really worked on my shooting,” Green said. “Because I wasn’t really that much of a shooter. I liked layups, and that’s what I’m good at. But my coaches told me that once I got a good outside perimeter shot, I’m going to be unstoppable.”
As well as he can play defense, Green said it continues to be a focus of improvement. He wants to take the challenge of taking another team’s top offensive option out of rhythms. It helps that he plays on a George Washington team with tenacious guard brothers Jon’il (2018) and Calvin (2017) Fugett, at the point of attack and lengthy Daylen Kountz (2018) patrolling the other wing.
“I love playing with them,” Green said. “This is a good group of kids. When we’re all having fun and just playing, we’re unstoppable.”
Asked what his team is capable of if it fires on all cylinders as it did Saturday, Green did hesitate.
“State championship,” he said.