When the Detroit Pistons signed Javonte Green, it drove curiosity. Green, who’s joining the Pistons on a one-year deal after splitting his time between the Pelicans and the Cavaliers last season, is anything but your average forward in the league. That’s because basketball wasn’t even his favorite sport growing up; football was the one. In fact, many state that the former Cavs star was so good at it that he would’ve been in the NFL instead of the NBA. But how has Javonte Green’s unique background and ethnicity influenced his journey to the NBA?

When the time came to choose one, basketball was something Javonte Green wanted to pursue. However, it wasn’t easy for him to make it into the league. Green went undrafted and had to work his way up into the NBA, and he did exactly that, landing a role with the Celtics. Now, after several successful stints, Green is all set to embark on a whole new adventure with this talented Pistons roster. However, before he does that, we’re about to know more about his ethnicity and background.

What is Javonte Green’s ethnicity?

If you’ve watched any of the Cavaliers’ games last season and asked, “Who’s that?” chances are that player was Javonte Green. Born in Petersburg, Virginia, Javonte grew up in an African-American household, which reflects in his incredible athleticism and scoring ability, making the six-foot-four forward stand out from the rest. But have you ever wondered where the dynamic forward gets these skills from? Yes, a major factor is his football background, but it is Green’s African-American roots, too.

Not just that, the area in which the new Detroit Pistons forward grew up was predominantly African-American. So, his love of sports started pretty early in his childhood. While Green preferred football, he was also equally, if not better, at basketball. However, in Petersburg, Green hooped for fun, just as a hobby; it wasn’t until he moved to Alberta, Virginia, that he started to play for his high school. At the tender age of 12, Javonte moved to live with his aunt in Alberta, where he attended Brunswick High School and started turning heads.

However, it wasn’t just because of basketball; he was also doing great as a quarterback in football. Despite having offers to play football at the college level, Green chose basketball even though coaches told him he wouldn’t make it to the league. But that did not affect Green even a little bit as he hustled his way to the top and proved everyone wrong. Now that we know about Javonte Green’s ethnicity, why don’t we find out his nationality?

What is Javonte Green’s nationality?

You might think that being born and raised in the United States would make the Pistons forward an American, right? No, the 32-year-old holds dual nationality. While Green is an American by birth, he’s also a citizen of Montenegro through naturalization. He chose to become a Montenegrin citizen to suit up for their national team.

The Detroit forward made his debut for the nation in 2017. Since then, he’s been a regular feature in the squad. However, that doesn’t mean Green doesn’t remain connected to his American roots. On the contrary, due to his upbringing, he remains a loud and proud American citizen. That’s all you need to know about Javonte Green’s nationality, which takes us to the next question: which religion does the Pistons star follow?

What is Javonte Green’s religion?

While Javonte Green is proud of his African-American heritage, the veteran forward prefers to keep things low-key when it comes to his religious beliefs. Even though Green has not talked about his religion in public, there are things that indicate that him being a Christian. This doesn’t come as a surprise, given that many African-American athletes from Virginia are Christian by faith. However, we cannot say anything for sure until Green himself attests to this. Meanwhile, Green will be focused on helping his new team make a deep playoff run as the Pistons look to reset their ambitions.