Jeff Green has been hampered with plantar fasciitis throughout the playoffs, and made his series debut against the Bucks in Game 4. He scored 27 points in a Game 5 victory for the Nets, but shot just 2-for-9 in 35 minutes in Game 6.
With Kyrie Irving out and James Harden likely to be less than 100 percent, Green is going to be integral in Saturday’s Game 7, just don’t ask him how his foot is feeling.
“My foot is great. It’s still attached, still there so that’s a good sign,” Green joked. “How much pain I’m in? I’m good. I’m able to go out there and play, so I don’t like to talk about certain things. If I’m on the floor, I’m going to play hard. Everybody’s in pain at this point in the season. Everybody’s fighting through something, I’m dealing with something and it is what it is.”
After jumping out to a 2-0 lead in the series, Brooklyn has dropped three of the last four games to Milwaukee, and Khris Middleton has been a major factor. Middleton is averaging 29.3 points per game over the last four contest, including a 38-point barrage in Game 6.
“We have to make his shots tough,” Green said. “We can’t allow him four-point plays, spot-up threes. We have to force him to put the ball on the floor and play collectively on the defensive end.“
After three regular-season games against each other and now six more in this series, there’s no shortage of familiarity between the Nets and Bucks.
Because of that, and it being a decisive Game 7, Green knows it’s time to just go out there and play.
“You can always make adjustments,” Green said, “You can do that before games, during games. But at the same time, it’s going to be about going out there and playing hard. Regardless of the scouting report, going out there and leaving it all out on the floor, playing as hard as you can, that’s what it’s all about. The scouting report goes out the window at a certain point, you just have to go out there and give it all you got.”