Tier 2: The veteran (aging) superstars
In this next tier, we’re going to explore the superstar small forwards that find themselves toward the end of their respective careers. They’re still really good players but are likely beyond their prime years and the best basketball of their careers is likely behind them. Still, because of how talented they were at their peak, they deserve a seat in the top 5. For many of these players, their 80 percent is still better than most other’s 100 percent.
5. Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat
Somewhat a late bloomer, Jimmy Butler is still playing elite basketball, especially in the postseason. However, as we’ve seen over the past two seasons, he does have some difficulty in consistently playing at an elite level for a prolonged period of time. You can blame injuries if you want, but that’s kind of the point as well.
Jimmy is still an incredibly great player but he can’t be any higher on this list because he isn’t consistently one of the four best small forwards in the NBA. That said, if this was strictly a playoff ranking of small forwards, he’d probably be a few notches higher.
It is amazing how Jimmy almost single-handedly resurrected the Heat franchise post-LeBron James.