Top 10 SFs

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

Weekend means I can do this a bit more.

 

 

Be aware, this is my opinion, the opinion of a fan who simply spends too much time talking about the NBA on message boards and watching games, and while I can and will defend my rankings, it shouldn't be taken as fact or anything. The rankings are based solely off of 2015-2016 season and the players who make the top 10 had to of played at least half the season, for sample size reasons.

 

As always, you're welcome to post your own rankings and question mines... So, let's goooo.

 

Outside looking in:

 

12. Rudy Gay

17.2 PPG/ 1.7 AST/ 6.7 TRB/ 1.4 STLs

16 PER/ 46% FG/ 34% 3P/ 50% eFG/ 54% TS

 

Why he didn’t make it:

This was far from the best season Gay has had, as he, and the rest of the Kings dealt the entire season with inconsistencies and drama. He had some good things going for him this past season adjusting to Karl’s offense/defense, he had the best rebounding mark of his career and turned the ball over less. He took less shots then the year prior which probably led to a higher field goal. But overall his impact was far worse this year than the year prior. He also struggled this past season at getting to the line, which hurt his overall efficiency. This coming a season after we started to see Gay go through what may have been a revival with moving to the Kings.

 

11. Jae Crowder

14.2 PPG/ 1.8 AST/ 5.1 TRB/ 1.7 STLs/ 1.1 TOs

16 PER/ 44% FG/ 34% 3P/ 52% FG/ 57% TS

 

Why he didn’t make it:

Crowder proved last season that he is capable of being a key player in a playoff contender, putting up highs across the board in his extend role in the offense of the Celtics. If it wasn’t already evident that he was crucial to their success, it was pretty clear it had an affect when he wasn’t playing or was hurt. He was also a very good defender this past season, an area where he and Bradley played a huge role in shaping Boston into the good defensive squad they were last year. He still has a lot of room to grow though. His three game is very inconsistent, which is important for a player in an offense like Stevens’ that relies on making the three. Overall on offense he was inconsistent this past season, and needs to improve there going forward.

 

10. Tobias Harris

14.7 PPG/ 2.2 AST/ 6.7 TRB/ .9 STLs/ 1.4 TOs

16 PER/ 47% FG/ 34% 3P/ 51% eFG/ 56% TS/

 

Why he made it:

Harris was looking more and more as an odd man out in Orlando, and it showed in the way he performed so inconsistently why he was there. But the move to Detroit did wanders for him, as he started putting up numbers that were in many ways similar to two years prior, and in others, career type numbers. During his time in Detroit this past season he put up the best field goal percentage of his career, best 3-point percentage by far, and the highest true shooting percentage by far. The Pistons offense was far improved when Harris was in the game, as his abilities to score for himself off the dribble provided some much needed offense to go along Jackson’s. And while he’s still not where you’d like him to be on defense, he looked a lot more improved.

 

Why he’s not higher:

Harris is still heavily reliant on having the ball in his hands in order to make an impact on offense. When the ball isn’t there, he will stand around a lot. He improved his 3-point shooting when he came to Detroit but he still needs to prove he can do it consistently though, in order to help provide offense for other players. Then of course, you have his defense, which was fully on display in the playoffs and when the Pistons went up against tougher players. He got bullied and often looked out of place.

 

 

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

Also, I apologize for no pictures, and possibly weird text format. It's literally impossible for me to copy and paste pictures, texts, edit texts, etc on TGP now for some reason. Been going on for about a little over a month and I'm starting to say fuck it. Lol.

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

Part 2:

9. Chandler Parsons

14 PPG/ 2.8 AST/ 4.7 TRB/ .8 STLs

16.2 PER/ 49% FG/ 41% 3P/ 57% eFG/ 59% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 10:

Parson sstarted off the season with some struggles due to injuries that nobody was sure on how long would take to heal. But once he picked up, Parsons proved to be an extremely key piece of the Mavericks’ success. He had his best shooting season to date and showed a lot of versatility in being able to handle some of the playmaking responsibilities and even scoring load when needed. What was crazy about Parsons’ season this past year was the potential he showed when the restrictions of minutes, etc were finally lifted in the second half of the season. Post all-star, Parsons was putting up 18 points a night on 45% from the 3 while attempted over 5 a game, shooting 52% from the field overall, and averaging 4 assists a game. The level of brilliance he showed in the second half of the season should give Mavs fans a lot of reasons to be excited considering he is still so young.

 

Why he’s not higher:

Parsons, who’s usually a pretty good defender was pretty bad this year, and occasionally subpar. It seemed more like, with him they were issues of mental lapses and no effort/focus then actual abilities, but when he was at his worst, it absolutely hurt the Mavericks. His lack of effort on defense directly resulted in Lillard getting open enough on the final possessions in one of the playoff games to end the Mavs’ season on a game winning 3. He also showed some limitations and inconsistencies when it comes to being a playmaker, and making smart decisions with the ball last season.

 

8. Danilo Gallinari

20 PPG/ 2.5 AST/ 5.3 TRB/ .8 STLs 1.5 TOs

19 PER/ 41% FG/ 36% 3P/ 47% eFG/ 58% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 10:

Danilo was asked to carry a lot of the load on offense for the Nuggets this past season, more so then any year prior. And while that affected his field goal %, it helped him accomplish some good offense numbers. He attempted a ridiculous 8 FTs a game, and made around 7 a game, with a free throw rate of .62. Those numbers are incredible, and puts him even above the likes of James Harden, the free throw leader in the NBA. His improved ability to get to the line (something he was already good at before) and hit the three allowed for Danilo to have his most efficient season to date. He was also a very good playmaker, and finished with an offensive ratting of 120 per 100 possessions, another mark that would put him near the very top of all NBA players. And he accomplished all of that while doing a great job of taking care of the ball.

 

Why he’s not higher:

The biggest issue with Danilo is injuries—He can’t seem to stay healthy, and while he managed to go the entire first half of the season mostly injury free, it ultimately crumpled and he ended up going down for the year. He hasn’t been able to play an entire season at any point in his career, and being that unreliable will forever hurt how much he can actually be relied on. There’s also too much iso ball coming from Danilo at times, which causes him to hurt his team a lot. Like Derozan, Danilo is essentially a poor man’s Harden, without the ability to get others involved. He needs to get to the point where he’s able to get his offense within the flow of the general team offense, as he doesn’t have the overall scoring abilities of a Harden.

 

7. Gordon Hayward

20 PPG/ 5.0 TRB/ 3.7 AST/ 1.2 STL/ 2.5 TOs

18 PER/ 43% FG/ 35% 3P/ 48% eFG/ 56% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 10:

Hayward continues to grow as a player, and the leader of a very young Jazz team, putting together another season where he put up some very good offensive numbers. He was relied upon to score, make plays for others, and rebound, while also being the go to guy at the end of games to finish, and he did a decent job of delivering. Despite the injuries that occurred to the Jazz this past season, Haywards’ general abilities to contribute on offense in a lot of ways in allowing the offense to be pretty efficient. He can score from anywhere on the court efficiently, multiple way, and while being only assisted in 46% of his made shots showed the ability to score on his own efficiently, something every offense needs. Favors shot nearly 13% better from the field per 100 possessions with Hayward in the game then out, which speaks volumes of how much Hayward in not only capable of being a playmaker, but how he opens up the paint for the bigs to operate.

 

Why he’s not higher:

Like many younger players, Hayward is extremely inconsistent, and this hurts the Jazz a lot because of how important he is to their success. He seemed to crumple a lot late in games, and you hope that that will all get better in time, but it holds him back right now. He also isn’t particularly good on the defensive side of the ball either. He isn’t bad by any means, and tends to be more towards average. When I’ve seen him play he hasn’t looked too bad, but the numbers (not the best way to measure defense) point to a minus defender who tends to allow players to shoot a higher percentage (46%) against him then against his teammates and players tend to shoot better from the 3 against him then on season averages.

 

 

[BwareDWare94 723]

Parsons signed with the Grizzlies. They're going to challenge for the 2 seed if they stay healthy.

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

You know, I totally forgot that. Assuming last season was just an outlier for the Grizzlies, they have potential to make a lot of noise.

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

Now that I'm back in the states I can finish this:

6. Giannis Antetokounmpo

17 PPG/ 4.3 AST/ 7.7 TRBs/ 1.2 STLs/ 2.6 TOs

18.3 PER/ 51% FG/ 26% 3P/ 52% eFG/ 57% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 10:

Giannis took off this past season, especially in the second half of the season after the all-star game posting some of the most impressive numbers of any forwards. Over the last 28 games, Giannis averaged 19 points, on 51% shooting while putting up 9 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game. All while doing a great job of keeping his turnovers relatively low. It’s unfortunate that the Bucks started putting the ball in his hands more in the second half of the season when they were already out of contention, because the Bucks’ offense went from having an offensive efficiency of 102.4 (24th in the NBA) to 109.1 (good for 3rd) when Giannis played the point. I used to think that Giannis was going to evolve into a poor man’s Kevin Durant, because of the movement skills and ability to dribble with the ball despite his big size, but I don’t see that anymore, because in the second half when he started getting the ball in his hands more he showed a certain level of playmaking that I haven’t seen consistently from Durant. He’s supposed to work with Lebron this offseason, I could see him getting even better seeing as he’s only 21. Additionally, despite having a weak 3-point game, he was still able to put up an very efficient season with a TS of 57% because of his abilities in transition to finish around the rim and draw contact and get to the line. He’s also very good on defense, because of his extremely long arms and mobility he’s able to play the lanes and terrorize perimeter players.

 

Why he’s not higher:

Giannis can’t shoot, especially from the three where he averaged an atrocious 26%, but even the midrange area outside of the paint he was shooting around 35% from. He also has shown some struggles with consistently hitting the free throws. If he’s going to spend as much time with the ball in his hands, he’s gotta be able to make jumpers and hit his free throws. Teams started playing defense on him by sagging off and packing the paint, making it harder for him to be effective, and if he hopes to help lead this offense in the future, he had to be able to make them pay for it. He also has yet to really put it all together for a whole season, he showed a lot more abilities as a scorer in the first half of the season then the second one. His perimeter defense could also stand to improve a bit more. He was a lot more successful defending guys around the rim then he was when they were attempting jumpers.

​

5. Paul George

23.1 PPG/ 7.0 TRB/ 4.1 AST/ 1.9 STLs/ 3.3 TOs

21 PER/ 42% FG/ 37% 3P/ 49% eFG/ 56% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 10:

Paul George started off this past season incredibly hot, to the point where I thought he was going to fight Steph Curry for the MVP spot. Over his 13 games in November, George was putting up 30 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists per game on 48% from the field, and 49% from the 3 while attempting nearly 8 a game. As the season progressed he got slightly worse, but still ended up looking like one of the best SFs in the NBA when it was all said and done. He showed how valuable he is to the success of the Pacers in the playoffs, where he in game 5, he accounted for 47% of the Pacers’ total offense. Beyond Monta Ellis, George proved to be the best playmaker for the Pacers, and when accounting for pass to assist ratio, George is tied for highest among all his teammates. George was also back to playing the usual defense he plays once the season started rolling around. George allowed players to score 40% of the time (4% lower than season averages) he was playing against them, and gave up a 3-point field goal of 30% (5% lower than season averages). Using his long frame and movement abilities for a guy of his size allows him to terrorize perimeter players and play the lanes without worrying too much about losing out on assignments.

 

Why he’s not higher:

As mentioned earlier, George fell off quite a bit from the way he started the season, and while that was expected due to just how crazy good he was at the beginning, it still highlighted areas where he could improve. His long range game was pretty horrendous at times, and I think the fact he took so many jumpers out there led to a lot of inefficiency in his game. He attempted over 500 3 pointers and nearly 500 mid-range jumpers, where he shot 38% both respectively. Points from the paint accounted for just 26% of his shot attempts, and that was where he was most effective. George also turned the ball over a lot for a primary ball handler, and some of these turnovers were very costly. He committed the 5th amount of turnovers of any player in the NBA, and finished with an atrocious 1.24 AST:TO ratio.

 

4. Carmelo Anthony

22 PPG/ 4.2 AST/ 7.7 TRB/ .9 STLs/ 2.4 TOs

20 PER/ 43% FG/ 34% 3P/ 47% eFG/ 53% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 10:
Melo continued to show himself as one of the most versatile scorers in the NBA, last year coming in 5th in offensive RPM. He took less shots then what we’ve come to expect from him, and was very effective inside of the 3-point line, hitting 45% of his midrange attempts. In the second half of the season, as another scoring option opened up in Porzingas, this also helped Melo greatly as his numbers got better and more efficient as he was able to not handle all the load. Especially in the month of March where he put up 25/7/4 on 48% FG, 41% from the 3 and hitting 91% of his free throws. Carmelo’s greatest asset to an offense is that he can contribute in scoring multiple ways without the need of someone setting him up, and this past season he did so while also putting up a very impressive turnover ratio of 9.0 while being among the top starting SFs in assist ratio. He was also one of the best rebounding perimeter guys ranking right below Durant and Giannis in rebounding rate. The other area this past season where Melo showed a lot of abilities was on the defensive side of the ball where he actually was very good, in iso situations and borderline great towards the beginning/halfway point of the season. There was a point in the season where he was holding players to 30% shooting (15% lower than season average) and he finished the season holding players to 42%, which is still 3% better then season averages.

 

Why he’s not higher:

Consistency and efficiency as a whole continues to be a problem for Durant, where when he’s on, he does a lot for a team and an offense, but when he’s off he can also kill that. He relies a lot on iso ball and sometimes causes the offense to stall. His usage rate was lower this past year then the year before, but when you take up this many of your team’s possessions you have to be more consistent. While Melo looked a lot better on defense this past season, he also still showed glimpses of being very bad as well, and with him it’s mostly related to effort. At least in my opinion as he’s shown that he can be very good when he wants to be. It was pretty clear that the way he started off the season all the way up to january on defense playing excellent across the board wasn’t sustainable, but it fell off pretty hard at times down the stretch. Like has been the theme for the past couple of seasons, health was a big issue with him, and you hope that he manages to get healthier.

[DonovanMcnabb for H.O.F 2,241]

Figured I'd finish this:

 

3. Kevin Durant

28 PPG/ 8.2 TRB/ 5.0 AST/ 1.0 STLs/ 1.2 BPG/ 3.5 TOs

28 PER/ 51% FG/ 39% 3P/ 57% eFG/ 63% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 3:

Durant continued to prove himself as someone who will probably go down as one of the best scorers in the history of the NBA. He finished near the top among all players in the NBA in just about every scoring opportunities and shot an incredible 73% from the left side of the rim. He improved his catch and shoot field goal percentage by 5% this past season, and as mentioned earlier in the point guard thread, was a part of one of the best pick and roll offenses with Russell Westbrook. Beyond his ability to score in a multitude of ways, his passing was also on display last season as he finished second in assists among SFs and was third among all SFs who made this list in assist rate. He did a great job last season of finding the open guy when there was pressure on him. He was also the best overall rebounder among all SFs with the highest rebounding rate of any of them, and the highest defensive rebounding rate. He finished on offense with the 2nd highest in offensive win shares, which speaks to the many ways he helped out on the offensive side. On defense, Durant who has always been a pretty underrated defensive player last year was even better, especially in the playoffs. His numbers don’t really do a good job of illustrating how he was able to help his team overall this past season. He was able to use his overall length and good agility for his size and great explosiveness to play great iso defense on the perimeter. He was also very good at handling the pick and roll situation.

 

Where he could be better:

Durant was phenomenal this season, so there really aren’t that many areas that I can be critical of. He got to the line a bit less then what’s usual for him, recording his lowest free throw rate since his first year in the league. Turnovers were easily the biggest issues with Durant last year however, as he finished with 28 games where he turned the ball over at least 5 times, and was in general very sloppy with the ball. His tendencies to be prone to bad turnovers played a part in helping the Warriors win the series they were going to lose against OKC. His 1.4 AST:TO ratio puts is the would be the eighth worst among all SFs to make the list.

 

2. Kawhi Leonard

21 PPG/ 6.8 TRB/ 2.6 AST/ 1/8 STLs/ 1.0 BPG/ 1.5 TOs

26 PER/ 51% FG/ 44% 3P/ 57% eFG/ 62% TS

 

Why he’s in the top 3:

This was a ridiculous season for Leonard. He’s always been a dominant defender, but this season he proved to be a truly elite offensive player with incredible efficiency. Whereas most players in the NBA have one area that they excel the most at, Leonard this past season showed ability from everywhere on the court, developing a nasty post game that allows him to terrorize the smaller defenders who are quick enough to defend him and finish with hooks and quick spins to the basket. There was literally no area on the court last season that Leonard shot below 40% from and he shot over 60% from the paint. He also got a majority of his scoring within the flow of the offense and allowed for a lot of spacing, as 44% of his shots came off spot up jump shots. Probably the most impressive part of his improvements on offense was how he managed to have the highest usage of his career while also having by far his lowest turnover rate to date. He finished with a ridiculous offensive rating per 100 possessions of 121. Of course he was his usual dominant self on the defensive side of the ball this past season finishing first among SFs in defensive RPM, and being the only perimeter player to finish in the top 10 in that category. Allowed his man to score 39% from the field when he was on defense, which puts him among the top in the league, and allowed 45% from the paint, which puts him in the top 10 among all players. Leonard put on an incredible season last year, and that was his 5th season in the league, the future looks bright for him.

 

Why he’s not higher:

Most of the reasons he’s not higher stems from the abilities of the guy ahead of him. Any other season but last season where Curry locked up the MVP very easily, Leonard’s season would be MVP worthy.

 

1. Lebron James

25 PPG/ 7.4 TRB/ 6.8 AST/ 1/4 STLs/ 3.3 TOs

28 PER/ 52% FG/ 31% 3P/ 55% eFG/ 59% TS

 

Why he’s the best:

Lebron James continued to prove he’s one of the greatest players of all time, capping off a great season with an even better performance in the playoffs. He cut down the amount of shots outside of the restricted area, 56% of his scoring came from within 8 feet of the basket, as opposed to 43% the year before in Cleveland leading to far better scoring efficiency. The other thing this did was open the door for the Cavs offense to flow a lot better as Lebron was able to play the role of facilitator more out of the post. When he was off the court per 100 possessions, the Cavs scored nearly 14 points less, which is equal to Steph Curry’s impact on that side, which is very impressive for someone who was “coasting” in the regular season. And while Steph did it by scoring, Lebron did it by finding the open man out of the post, continuing to prove to be one of the best passer since Magic Johnson. He took off in the playoffs with one of the best playoff runs of his career, finishing with the second highest effective field goal of his career and finishing in the finals putting together averages of 30/11/9. James was also quietly great on defense this past season, and was pretty surprised he ended up not being on an all-defensive team. He gave up a defensive field goal of 37% from the field while on defense, which to put into perspective, Draymond and Leonard gave up 39.4% and 39.2% respectively. According to synergy sports, Jams finished in the 93rd percentile in iso defense, 88th percentile in pick and roll defense, and 87th percentile in spot up defense. It was even more impressive in the playoffs where he gave up an incredible defensive field goal of 32%, and against one of the best teams in the history of the NBA, he gave up a defensive field foal of 32% as well. This doesn’t take into account the fact that Lebron was also the coach on the court on defense, and there were many times you could see him barking out defensive orders for his teammates.

 

Where he could improve:

He shot the worst percentage of his career from the 3 this past year, and that’s with less attempts then his career average. His field goal from the mid-range area being 38% was below league average (40%). I don’t really think he has a broken jumper as much as I think it’s just inconsistent. And while the three ball, and being able to hit the outside jumper should be complementary for James to being able to work with your back to the basket, it certainly helps to be able to make defenses pay with more consistency for sagging off.