A. J. Green (basketball)

AJ Green
	Green with the Northern Iowa Panthers
No. 20 – Milwaukee Bucks
Position	Shooting guard
League	NBA
Personal information
Born	September 27, 1999 (age 25); Cedar Falls, Iowa, U.S.
Listed height	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight	190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school	Cedar Falls (Cedar Falls, Iowa)
College	Northern Iowa (2018–2022)
NBA draft	2022: undrafted
Playing career	2022–present
Career history
2022–present	Milwaukee Bucks
2022–2023; 2024	→Wisconsin Herd
Career highlights and awards
	2× MVC Player of the Year (2020, 2022); 2× First-team All-MVC (2020, 2022); Third-team All-MVC (2019); MVC Freshman of the Year (2019);
	Stats at NBA.com
	Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

AJ Green (born September 27, 1999) is an American basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Northern Iowa Panthers.

Early life and high school career

Green attended Holmes Junior High School, where he first decided he wanted to play college basketball.^[1] He played for Cedar Falls High School on the basketball team as well as the Iowa Barnstormers in AAU play.^[2] As a senior, he averaged 26 points per game and became Cedar Falls' all-time leading scorer. He led the team to a state championship.^[3]

Recruiting

Green was a consensus four-star recruit and was considered the No. 78 player in the 2018 class by ESPN. On August 11, 2017, he committed to play college basketball for Northern Iowa, where his father was a member of the coaching staff. Green became the highest-rated player to ever commit to Northern Iowa and the program's first four-star recruit. He chose the Panthers over offers from Iowa State, Minnesota and Nebraska, among other major programs.^[3]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
A. J. Green PG	Cedar Falls, IA	Cedar Falls (IA)	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Aug 11, 2017
A. J. Green PG	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 84
Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 94 247Sports: 80 ESPN: 78
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Northern Iowa 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021. "2018 Northern Iowa Panthers Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 25, 2021.

College career

As a freshman, Green averaged 15 points per game.^[1] However, he struggled with turnovers, with 77 assists to 94 turnovers.^[4] Green was named Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year, becoming the first Northern Iowa player to receive the honor since Seth Tuttle in 2012, as well as Third Team All-MVC.^[5] On January 4, 2020, Green scored a career-high 35 points in a 69–64 win over Bradley.^[6] He had 34 points on February 8, in a 83–73 win over Drake.^[7] On February 12, Green scored 27 points in a 71–63 win over Illinois State and surpassed the 1,000-point threshold.^[8] At the conclusion of the regular season, Green was named MVC Player of the Year.^[9] He averaged 19.7 points and 3.0 assists per game as a sophomore.^[10] Following the season, Green declared for the 2020 NBA draft.^[11] However, on July 30, 2020, he withdrew from the draft and decided to return to Northern Iowa for his junior season.^[12]

On December 13, 2020, Panthers head coach Ben Jacobson announced that Green would undergo hip surgery and miss the remainder of the 2020–21 season. He only appeared in 3 games, averaging 22.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.^[13] The following season, Green returned and averaged 18.8 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game, culminating in his second selection as MVC Player of the Year.^[14] On April 20, 2022, Green entered the transfer portal while also declaring for the 2022 NBA draft and maintaining his college eligibility.^[15] However, on June 1, 2022, he announced he would remain in the draft and forego his remaining eligibility.^[16]

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft, Green signed a two-way contract with the Milwaukee Bucks.^[17] Green joined the Bucks' 2022 NBA Summer League roster.^[18] In his Summer League debut, Green scored fourteen points in a 94–90 win against the Brooklyn Nets.^[19]

On July 7, 2023, Green signed a standard contract with the Bucks.^[20] On February 9, 2024, Green scored a career-high 27 points during a 125–109 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.^[21]

Career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

NBA

Regular season


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2022–23	Milwaukee	35	1	9.9	.424	.419	1.000	1.3	.6	.2	.0	4.4
2023–24	Milwaukee	56	0	11.0	.423	.408	.895	1.1	.5	.2	.1	4.5
Career		91	1	10.5	.424	.412	.913	1.2	.6	.2	.0	4.5

Playoffs


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2024	Milwaukee	6	0	11.2	.375	.182	1.000	1.5	.3	.0	.0	2.8
Career		6	0	11.2	.375	.182	1.000	1.5	.3	.0	.0	2.8

College


Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2018–19	Northern Iowa	34	34	29.9	.410	.348	.864	3.0	2.3	.6	.1	15.0
2019–20	Northern Iowa	31	31	34.8	.416	.391	.917	3.0	3.0	.7	.0	19.7
2020–21	Northern Iowa	3	3	36.3	.464	.407	.667	5.7	2.7	1.3	.7	22.3
2021–22	Northern Iowa	31	31	36.4	.410	.388	.915	3.7	2.5	.8	.0	18.8
Career		99	99	33.7	.414	.378	.900	3.3	2.6	.7	.1	17.9

Personal life

Green's father, Kyle Green, is an associate head basketball coach for Iowa State. He was previously an assistant coach and later associate head coach for Northern Iowa. Kyle played NCAA Division III basketball for Hamline University before spending one season professionally in Denmark, where he also began his coaching career.^[1] Green's mother, Michele, played basketball for Hamline and is a chiropractor. Green's younger sister, Emerson, played basketball for Cedar Falls High School and is now playing at Northern Iowa.^[22]