Jalen Green says the Suns are on the right path
Jalen Green talks about growing during the off-season and having a good relationship with teammates.
Diannie Chavez and Diana Payan/The Republic
Jalen Green scored 29 points in his Phoenix Suns debut, leading the team to a win over the Los Angeles Clippers.Green was acquired in an offseason trade with the Houston Rockets for Kevin Durant.He was the No. 2 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft after skipping college to play for the G League Ignite.
Jalen Green made his debut with the Phoenix Suns on Thursday, Nov. 6, and what a debut it was. He scored 29 points, leading the team in its 115-102 win over the Los Angeles Clippers at Mortgage Matchup Center.
Green was acquired in the offseason trade that sent Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets. He missed the team’s first eight games of the season with a hamstring injury, but is a potent scorer who will continue to start alongside Devin Booker to make for a formidable backcourt.
Here are some things to know about Green.
Jalen Green was a high school standout, skipped D-I college offers
Green was born in Merced, California, and was a 5-star high school recruit out of California who earned numerous national honors. ESPN rated him the No. 1 recruit in the nation in the 2020 high school class. He was extended offers by top national Division I college programs while in high school, including Arizona, USC, Oregon, Auburn and Florida State. He opted to instead join the NBA G League Ignite, a developmental team affiliated with the league.
When was Jalen Green drafted?
Green was chosen second overall by the Houston Rockets in the 2021 NBA Draft. He was the first player drafted into the NBA out of the G League. He spent the next four seasons with the Rockets.
Jalen Green by the numbers
Green, 23, is a 6-foot-4, 186-pound shooting guard.
He averaged 21 points a game last season with the Rockets, shooting 42% from the field. His highest scoring game is 42 points, which he’s done three times in his career.
He averaged 4.6 assists and 3.4 rebounds last season.
He played in all 82 games the past two seasons.
Jalen Green’s personal life, girlfriend
Green was born Feb. 9, 2002, in Merced, California, and attended high school in Fresno and Napa.
Green has been dating Draya Michele, an actress and model who has starred on “Basketball Wives LA,” since 2023. They have one daughter together. Green also has another daughter.
Green has two sisters and is of partial Filipino descent on his mother’s side.