The Future of Small Forwards
Kawhi Leonard – San Antonio Spurs
Mar 24, 2015; Dallas, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward
Kawhi Leonard(2) during the game against the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center. The Mavericks defeated the Spurs 101-94. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Believe it or not, the 2014 NBA Finals MVP is still just 23 years old. Leonard is now a 4-year veteran of the league and what separates him from nearly every other name on this list is the fact that he isn’t known for his offensive prowess or next level athleticism.
Kawhi Leonard was originally drafted by the Indiana Pacers with the 15th selection in the 2011 draft. He was traded that same day to the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for George Hill. Since then he spent day-after-day under the tutelage of Coach Gregg Popovich.
The elite-level defense on the perimeter that he was able to provide, helped lead the Spurs through the Western Conference Playoffs in consecutive seasons and he was named MVP after his squad ended the reign of the Miami Heat atop the NBA hierarchy.
He has come along nicely since his introduction to the NBA, improving year by year in a number of statistical categories on offense. At the same time he has managed to maintain the same level of intensity on the opposite end and once more it appears that the Spurs are playoff bound with him in the middle of it all.
Jabari Parker – Milwaukee Bucks
In all honesty, it feels like the basketball world was robbed just before the midway point of the season. It seemed as though we were watching the eventual Rookie of the Year winner going to work in Milwaukee on a nightly basis.
Jabari Parker proved to the world that he was a natural scorer. He bounced around spots on the floor in Jason Kidd’s early season lineup rotations and proved that he could light up the score board from nearly any position.
Nov 26, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Jabari Parker (12) looks on during the third quarter against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Target Center. The Bucks defeated the Timberwolves 103-86. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
The biggest knock on Parker in the early going was his shooting from beyond the three-point arc. It was incredibly inconsistent, and in the modern NBA it has become a staple that players on the wing are able to shoot the long ball as a means of spacing the floor. Twenty-nine percent, that’s a three-point percentage just a touch higher than what Jabari Parker averaged this year and is still by no means a good one, it’s also the mark that one Lebron James hit in his rookie campaign.
There’s room for improvement without a doubt when it comes to Parker. The fact of the matter is though, he’s a natural born scorer with a chance to take this league by storm, and he put the league on notice in the early going this season.
Next: Power Forwards