A number of writers and fans have been asking for a Jeff Green trade for a while now, and the reason behind it is flawed.
With the old timers gone, we got to see Jeff Green forced into a number 1 scorer role. He wasn't very good at it. Then again, why would anyone with very good knowledge of the the game and his game in particular think that Green had the skills and mindset to be a successful number 1 or number 2 scorer?
Jeff Green isn't a guy who can create his own shot and put up 22 points per game like Paul Pierce, Joe Johnson, Bryant, James, Anthony, George, Gay, DeRozan, etc. He lacks the one on one skills and the killer mindset. He is an excellent athlete and a nice versatile finisher who can sky for a dunk, or nail a three pointer. But you are never going to clear out for Jeff Green multiple times a game, and multiple games in a row.
In other words he is probably a nice 4th best player to have on a contender. That would put him in the company of Antoine Walker as a member of the Miami heat, or Derek Fisher, Shane Battier, Shawn Marion on the Mavs, old Ray Allen on the Heat, old Ginobili, etc.
Then writers and fans say that if he isn't a good number 2 option, we should trade him! Well, he isn't being paid like a number 2 option. He is being paid a touch more than Avery Bradley and Trevor Ariza. Are those guys must trade players too? Green is still a top 15 small forward in the NBA. Below him you are looking at Harrison Barns, DeMarre Caroll, Wilson Chandler, Terrance Ross, etc. Is that the calibur of small forward you would rather have? Why down grade our talent? So we can win 3 fewer games and move 1 or 2 spots higher in the lottery? And then if you lose out in the lottery, what do you have to show for it?
Players at other positions I rank as about 13th best at their respective positions are Ty Lawson, Aaron Afflalo, David Lee, and Greg Monroe. These guys all have talent, also aren't good enough to be 2nd best players or even 3rd best on a contender, and ultimately don't shift your win loss needle very much. And yet i have read a lot of pining for Afflalo and Monroe in particular. Yet Green is no good, and has to go. I find this confusing, and just chalk it up to people wanting change for change sake.
Considering he doesn't move the needle much, I am impartial about keeping or moving him. In the meantime having a top 13 small forward is better then not having one. Getting talent is really hard. Throwing away the second best player on our team for practically nothing is wasteful. Until the Rondo situation is resolved, I am happy to keep Green around. He will then become a good 4th man for us, a trade piece in a package for an upgrade, or we let him expire so that we can pay someone else who increases the talent of the team.