Bucks' win over Heat should only continue to build rising guard's confidence

The Milwaukee Bucks' new youth movement has been a breath of fresh air, giving the team several young, athletic players who can patch some of the team's prominent roster flaws.

Among those leading the charge is AJ Green, the third-year undrafted wing who has cemented his place in the Milwaukee Bucks' rotation this season. Green has primarily come off the bench, forming a lethal one-two punch with Gary Trent Jr., but in Milwaukee's recent matchup against the Miami Heat, the young guard found himself starting.

AJ Green's clutch performance for Bucks should boost his confidence

Once holding a 22-point lead, the Milwaukee Bucks found themselves up by just one in the closing minutes of the final frame.

With Miami sending a double-team at the red-hot Damian Lillard, Green received a pass in the corner and buried the shot to put the Bucks up four with about three minutes to go. About 30 seconds later, Miami once again cut it to one. With the shot clock winding down and Tyler Herro draped all over him, AJ Green took a rare off-the-dribble three, knocking it down.

At that point, Green's confidence, which is already sky-high regularly, was on full display. He proved that next with what would have been the biggest shot of his career.

With the Milwaukee Bucks once again up by just a single point and with the shot clock winding down, Green received the pass. With five seconds left, a triple would have essentially ended this one. Green did indeed knock down the shot, but it was just a tad late on the shot clock, wiping away the basket. Thankfully, the Bucks still went on to win, otherwise that would have been heart-breaking.

In addition to the tough shot-making on display, Green was tasked with slowing down Jimmy Butler for part of the contest. Butler certainly got the best of him, tallying seven points while drawing three shooting fouls during their minutes matched up. However, the guard earned some valuable defensive reps versus one of the toughest covers in the game, which should be good for his growth.

Green's clutch gene was on display in this game. Not many undrafted third-year players can say that they play such a vital role for a contender that they are taking a potential game-sealing shot for their team. That just speaks to the belief Doc Rivers and teammates have in Green. To this point, Green has done nothing but prove them right with his play on both ends this season.

These are valuable late-game reps that will help Green continue to grow as a player. He's very quickly becoming a legitimate breakout candidate, and he should only continue to progress if the Bucks keep trusting him to this degree. AJ Green's potential has no limits at this point.

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