UNC guard excelling in anticipation of dad's release

Danny Green Jr. had 12 second-half points and three steals in the Tar Heels' win over Rutgers on Sunday. Peyton Williams/ICON SMI

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PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- For the occasion of fall semester finals at the University of North Carolina, Carol Moore ordered a care package for her grandson, Tar Heels junior forward Danny Green. It contained candy, fruit, and the like, all kinds of fuel for pulling all-nighters in advance of exams. Upon receiving it last week, Green picked out a couple of things -- "Some gummy bears, some popcorn, that was it," he said -- but then boxed it back up and readied it for re-shipping.

The destination: Ogdensburg Correctional Facility.

The recipient: His father.

Danny Green Sr. is serving time in a medium-security prison in Ogdensburg, N.Y., on the Canadian border, a location much closer to Ottawa than it is to his former home in North Babylon, N.Y., on Long Island. He was arrested March 31, 2006, on conspiracy charges related to a drug bust that yielded 462 pounds of cocaine, $5 million in cash and nine firearms.

Green Sr. maintained his innocence, claiming he was not involved in the drug-trafficking scheme, but pleaded to a Class B felony, which carried a 1-3 year sentence. But Moore said that following a recent parole hearing, she is nearly certain that her son will be released in the next two months. At worst, he will remain in Ogdensburg until March 24, a time when Danny Jr.'s Tar Heels -- who are 9-0 after Sunday's 93-71 win over Rutgers and ranked No. 1 in the nation -- could be three days away from a Sweet 16 appearance in Charlotte.

The post-finals game against the Scarlet Knights was Danny Jr.'s de-facto homecoming, as it took place 90 minutes away from North Babylon. It got off to a gory start, as he suffered a deep cut over his right eye while trying to defend a layup by Rutgers' Mike Coburn at the 11:42 mark. With five stitches holding together the gash, Danny Jr. returned to score 12 second-half points on 5-of-7 shooting, as well as record three steals and dish out two assists against zero turnovers.

Moore, who was sitting in the front row behind the UNC bench and wearing a Carolina-blue No. 14 jersey in honor of her grandson, stood up to cheer in the second half when he made a pumping, reverse layup at the 9:49 mark. Seated directly to her right was his youngest brother, 10-year-old Devonte, also clad in a No. 14 jersey. "He was so upset" -- to the point of tears -- "when he saw Danny get hurt," Moore said, but was celebrating along with her later in the game.

Their middle brother, Rashad, who at 19 is just 10 1/2 months younger than Danny Jr., made the trip to the Louis Brown Athletic Center still clad in his Manhattan College warmup suit. Just an hour before tip in Piscataway, the Jaspers, for whom he's a freshman forward, had finished off a 71-65 win at Princeton. After recording 16 points, seven rebounds and five steals, Rashad managed to hitch a ride with the team's play-by-play announcer, Ed Cohen, over to the RAC so he could take in the game with Moore and Devonte.

A few minutes after the conclusion of Carolina-Rutgers -- a rout in which the Tar Heels held at least a 20-point lead for all but three minutes and 41 seconds of the second half -- Green's family and friends gathered outside the UNC locker room, waiting for Danny Jr. to emerge. It was then that Rashad received a cell-phone call from a friend, who patched him in with a third party: Danny Sr., checking in from Ogdensburg for an update on his sons' games. "Before he hung up, he just said for us both to keep working hard," Rashad said.

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