Willie Green

William Julius Green (born July 28, 1981) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who was most recently the head coach for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played professionally in the NBA with the Philadelphia 76ers, New Orleans Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Los Angeles Clippers and Orlando Magic. He was selected in the second round (41st pick overall) of the 2003 NBA draft by the Seattle SuperSonics and later acquired by the Philadelphia 76ers from Seattle in a draft-night trade for the draft rights to Paccelis Morlende (50th pick overall) and cash considerations.

Professional career

Philadelphia 76ers (2003–2010) Green was a 1999 graduate of Cooley High School; after a college career at the University of Detroit Mercy, he was selected by the Seattle SuperSonics in the second round (41st overall) of the 2003 NBA draft. He was traded the same day to the Philadelphia 76ers for the draft rights to Paccelis Morlende and cash considerations. Green was due to re-sign with the Sixers during the 2005 offseason, but suffered an injury the day of the contract signing, which put the contract in a state of limbo. On March 23, 2006, he officially re-signed with the Sixers, and on April 4, 2006, he was activated and played 11 minutes, scoring 9 points on 4-for-6 shooting in a loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Green, in the final Sixers game of the 2006–07 season, had a career-high 37 points against the Toronto Raptors on April 4, 2007. Green beat out Rodney Carney for the Sixers starting shooting guard position. During the 2007–08 NBA season, Green had career highs in games played (74, all of them as a starter), minutes played (26.6), field goal percentage (.436), rebounds (2.5), assists (2.0), and points (12.4).

New Orlea

Assistant coach (2016–2021)
On August 9, 2016, Green was hired by the Golden State Warriors coaching staff as an assistant coach. He won his first championship when the Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games of the 2017 NBA Finals. Green won his second straight championship when the Warriors defeated the Cavaliers in four games of the 2018 NBA Finals.
On June 26, 2019, he was hired as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns.

New Orleans Pelicans (2021–2025)
On July 22, 2021, Green was named head coach of the New Orleans Pelicans. After starting the season 1–12, Green led the Pelicans to a 36–46 record, finishing ninth in the Western Conference and securing a spot in the NBA play-in tournament. The Pelicans would go on to beat the San Antonio Spurs and the Los Angeles Clippers en route to their first playoff berth since the 2017–18 season. Green and the Pelicans would ultimately fall to the Phoenix Suns, Green's former team, in six games in the First Round.
Green and the Pelicans started the 2022–23 season off strong, tied with the Denver Nuggets for first place in the Western Conference at the start of 2023 with a 23–12 record. However, injuries to multiple players, including Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram, saw the team regress significantly during the second half of the season. The Pelicans finished ninth in the Western Conference, qualifying for the play-in tournament for the second consecutive season. Their season ended with a 123–118 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on April 12, 2023. Despite their struggles, Green and the Pelicans finished the regular season with a 42–40 record, marking Green's first winning season as a head coach.
After a 2–10 start to the 2025–26 season, placing New Orleans at the bottom of the Western Conference, Green was fired on November 15, 2025.

Awards
Midwestern Collegiate Conference All-Newcomer Team: 2000
Second Team All-Midwestern Collegiate Conference: 2001
Horizon League Scoring Leader: 2003
Horizon League All-Tournament Team: 2003
All-Horizon First Team: 2003
Horizon League Player of the Year: 2003
Honorable Mention All-America by AP: 2003
Portsmouth Invitational All-Tournament Team: 2003