After being sidelined since November, Taurean Prince's return to the lineup had Milwaukee Bucks fans wondering whose playing time he would snatch to reclaim his spot in the rotation. Quickly, the answer was revealed via a 15-minute night for AJ Green against the Phoenix Suns. Doc Rivers has planted his flag firmly, making it clear that if Green's struggles persist, Prince may play over him.
Green needs to take this realization to heart and get himself into a groove.
Green's slump has been a tough watch lately
It's been a March to forget for AJ Green. In six games this month, the guard is averaging 5.7 points on 23.7 percent 3-point shooting. For a player who had been one of the best shooters in the league for a good chunk of the season, this sudden fall-off has been shocking, to say the least. He went from one of Milwaukee's most reliable contributors to someone in danger of losing his role.
Compared to February, Green is averaging nearly 10 fewer minutes per game this month. His inability to hit shots has become too difficult to ignore, and Doc Rivers clearly doesn't want to wait around for him to get back on the right track. Against the Suns, Green played just 15 minutes, tied for a season-low. Despite this being Prince's first game since November 4, he actually played more than Green.
Prince can help Bucks, but so can Green
Prince won't drastically change Milwaukee's fate, but he can certainly be of use. He's the type of 3-and-D forward this team has been missing most of the season. Though he missed all of his shots in his return, he's still a dead-eye long-range shooter. His length can also be useful on defense. If Green isn't giving those things to the Milwaukee Bucks, Rivers will continue to see if Prince can.
For Green, it's go time. He shouldn't be ripped from the rotation entirely, but if he keeps missing these triple ties, his playing time will continue to decrease. Luckily for him, all he has to do to get himself out of this slump is to do what he does best: shoot the ball. Sooner or later, they have to start going in with some sort of regularity. All players go through these slumps.
He's been getting excellent looks, but he's not hitting them. In March, Green is shooting 4-of-12 (33.3 percent) on his "open" triple tries and 1-of-6 (16.7 percent) on his "wide open" 3-point looks. For a marksman of his caliber, those numbers just won't cut it. If Green wants to get back to playing major minutes, it all starts with hitting these 3-point shots on a regular basis.
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