Projecting NBA's Best Small Forwards in 2016‑17 Season

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1 / 12OrlandoMagic.com’s Josh Cohen projects the best small forwards in 2016-17. Click through this gallery for rankings. Honorable Mentions Nicolas Batum – His first year in Charlotte was terrific. Can he sustain that or even build on it or is he on a path to having a roller coaster career? Brandon Ingram – Everyone is fixated on his weight. In fact, Ingram getting a weigh-in every day could be a daily storyline this season. But regardless of what the scale says, it’s pretty apparent he is going to be a very impressive scorer in the league for many years. Tobias Harris – He fit in nicely with Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson and Co. after the trade to Detroit. But has he reached his ceiling? Danilo Gallinari – Increasing free throw attempts was huge for him last season. So was staying healthy and that is still a question mark moving forward. Chandler Parsons – He got paid like a superstar despite unfortunate injuries last season. Memphis has been desperate for 3-point shooting the last few years. Maybe, he is the perfect addition. Harrison Barnes – He really struggled in the NBA Finals but maybe now as a go-to scoring option on a new team he will have the best season of his career. Click through this gallery for players ranked in the top 10

thumbnail-image: OrlandoMagic.com’s Josh Cohen projects the best small forwards in 2016-17. Click through this gallery for rankings. Honorable Mentions Nicolas Batum – His first year in Charlotte was terrific. Can he sustain that or even build on it or is he on a path to having a roller coaster career? Brandon Ingram – Everyone is fixated on his weight. In fact, Ingram getting a weigh-in every day could be a daily storyline this season. But regardless of what the scale says, it’s pretty apparent he is going to be a very impressive scorer in the league for many years. Tobias Harris – He fit in nicely with Andre Drummond, Reggie Jackson and Co. after the trade to Detroit. But has he reached his ceiling? Danilo Gallinari – Increasing free throw attempts was huge for him last season. So was staying healthy and that is still a question mark moving forward. Chandler Parsons – He got paid like a superstar despite unfortunate injuries last season. Memphis has been desperate for 3-point shooting the last few years. Maybe, he is the perfect addition. Harrison Barnes – He really struggled in the NBA Finals but maybe now as a go-to scoring option on a new team he will have the best season of his career. Click through this gallery for players ranked in the top 10
thumbnail-image: #10 Aaron Gordon Gordon made solid progress from his injury-riddled rookie year to his excitement-filled sophomore season. Aside from his unforgettable performance in the All-Star Weekend dunk contest, Gordon had impressive stretches in the final three months of the season. He nearly averaged a double-double in February (11.1 points, 9.8 rebounds) all while demonstrating his supreme athleticism and defensive gifts. Becoming a more complete offensive player – particularly as a 3-point shooter – is critical to his overall development.
thumbnail-image: #9 Ben Simmons We haven’t seen a 6’10 prospect with this type of court vision, athleticism and playmaking ability since LeBron James came in the league in 2003. While he will likely be somewhat limited by his erratic jump shot, Simmons is expected to fill the stat sheet from day one. He had a somewhat controversial season last year at LSU because his team did not reach the NCAA Tournament. However, his 19 points, 11 rebounds and almost five assists per game didn’t go unnoticed.
thumbnail-image: #8 Carmelo Anthony How will Melo blend with his array of new teammates (Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah and Courtney Lee particularly) and is he willing to fully pass the torch over to Kristaps Porzingis, who many think needs to be New York’s featured star. Anthony quietly had a solid season last year. What was interesting, though, was that it was impressive not because of his scoring (had lowest PPG since second NBA season) but because of pretty much everything else. He averaged a career-best 4.2 assists and had some terrific defensive numbers (limited opponents to 42 percent shooting from field and 30 percent from 3-point range).
thumbnail-image: #7 Gordon Hayward Hayward is far more aggressive and tenacious than he gets credit for. In two seasons in a row, he’s averaged around six free throw attempts per game. That’s a good statistical indication of how persistent he is attacking the rim. However, it’s troubling that his 3-point shooting and playmaking continues to decline. Last year, he shot just 34.9 percent from 3-point distance and dished out 3.7 assists per game. Considering he averaged close to 20 points, if he can improve his 3-point shooting by two or three percent, we may be looking at a player who could be in the top 10 in the league in scoring.
thumbnail-image: #6 Jimmy Butler The Bulls will be a fascinating team to watch early in the season. They have three All-Star caliber wing players that all struggle shooting from the perimeter. In today’s NBA with the 3-point shot so valuable, it seems irrational to think a team can overcome this deficiency. Butler, specifically, shot just 31 percent from beyond the arc last season despite averaging a career-best 20.9 points per game. There is a ton of pressure on Butler to successfully handle being Chicago’s leader. It makes it even more challenging when it seems every other week he is part of some trade speculation.
thumbnail-image: #5 Giannis Antetokounmpo The outlook on Antetokounmpo changed when the Bucks realized he needed to be the team’s primary playmaker. He had a spectacular finish to last season. He averaged around 15 points and just short of three assists during the first three months and then averaged nearly 19 points and more than seven dimes in the final two months. While not a threat from 3-point range (25 percent last year) and not nearly as impactful as he should be on the defensive side, Antetokounmpo has the tools to potentially lead the league in triple-doubles this year (had five of them in 2015-16).
thumbnail-image: #4 Paul George Similar to the assessment on Carmelo Anthony, George also has to figure out how he is going to mesh with several new teammates (Jeff Teague, Thaddeus Young and Al Jefferson). George’s sensational 2015-16 season was inspiring after what he went through the prior year recovering from that gruesome leg injury. He averaged a career high in scoring, matched his career best in assists and reclaimed his reputation as one of the league’s premier two-way players.
thumbnail-image: #3 Kevin Durant So, either the Warriors are going to average somewhere between 120 and 130 points per game or there’s going to be some individual statistical dips. Stephen Curry and Durant finished first and third, respectively, in scoring last season and Klay Thompson ranked 12th in this category. While nobody doubts how dominant and prolific they will be together, some wonder if there will be a reduction in 30-plus scoring performances from these three. Regardless of what his scoring average turns out to be, Durant can now perhaps get some recognition for all the other things he does well (underrated defender, excellent rebounder).
thumbnail-image: #2 Kawhi Leonard It was just flat out amazing last year to watch a guy who once was considered an inept 3-point shooter knock down 44 percent of his long distance shots. It’s unheard of for a guy to raise his 3-point shooting percentage by nearly 10 percent from the prior year. Leonard and Stephen Curry were the only two players last season to score at least 20 points per game and shoot higher than 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the free throw line. And most impressive, this sudden offensive transformation had no ill-effects on his defensive prowess.
thumbnail-image: #1 LeBron James Until Games 5, 6 and 7 of the NBA Finals, there was some chatter around the league that perhaps we were witnessing the early stages of a decline in LeBron’s career. With all the mileage and wear and tear from so many playoff battles through the years, there was reason to believe that. However, after what he did in those final three games – which were arguably three of the best individual performances in NBA Finals history – most of us are right back to believing James is still the greatest player in the game today. While it won’t be a surprise if the Cavs coast a bit during the regular season and there is extra rest for LeBron, let’s not come to any unnecessary judgments until the postseason rolls around.
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