NBA Player Rankings: Top-10 Small Forwards In The NBA

Apr 30, 2015; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs small forward

(2) shoots the ball against the Los Angeles Clippers in game six of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

3. Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio Spurs

Numbers to know:
4.4 – Defensive Win Shares, 1st among SFs
78% – Games played

You think having the most Defensive Win Shares while only playing 78% of total games is impressive? Leonard is one of three in NBA history to win Defensive Player of the Year and NBA Finals MVP (Jordan and Olajuwon) — yet he has the exact same number of All-Star game appearances as you and I, ZERO!

Leonard led the league in steals per game and Defensive Rating, and led all SFs in Win Shares per 48 minutes. On top of that, he has a nickname that is awesome, appropriate, and yet to be over-used by the media, The Claw.

It’s amazing that the Spurs have managed to segue from Robinson/Elliott to Duncan/Ginobili/Parker to Leonard/Aldridge, through shrewd signings, smart drafting, and some good luck/health. While Leonard has had some minor health concerns, Gregg Popovich is excellent at managing his roster through the regular season grind and ensuring maximum output is saved for the playoffs.

In Leonard, he has the perfect swiss army tool who can guard four positions (DRtg = 96.4), score efficiently (career 58.3 TS%), and rebound effectively (No. 1 in defensive rebounding among SFs), while limiting turnovers (1.5 per game).

San Antonio’s return as title favourites with the most coveted (available) free agent, no reigning championship (they never repeat), and a superstar-in-training who enters his fifth NBA season with little to no gaps in his game. Only two future hall-of-famers could be ranked higher.

Next: Kevin Durant