1.T-Mac 2.Peirce 3.Marion 4.Carmelo 5.LeBron You're probably wondering why I have James at #5 and even Carmelo ahead of him. LeBron is better than Melo in every category, but he's missing one thing. He's missing that 4th Qtr killer instinct. LeBron hasnt been very good in 4th Qtrs and Melo has. Carmelo has been one of the best Clutch players this year and that's why I have him over LeBron.
Marion may be playing several positions right now, but he has always played the 3. So despite the fact that he has been playin the 4 a lot this season, I still consider him a 3. 1. Shawn Marion - As great as LeBron has been, Marion has been just as much of a reason for the Suns' success as Nash. 2. LeBron James - arguably the best SF, if it weren't for the season Marion has been having 3. Tracy McGrady - If it weren't for his injury-filled season he may have been the best 3 in the league, which he had been for the past few seasons. 4. Paul Pierce - Having the best season of his career, too bad he's still with the C's.. 5. Carmelo Anthony - Also having a phenominal season, much better than most recognize IMO. Has been under control and making much better decisions with the ball. If he can develop that 3 ball over the summer, he would be my definition of a true "SF," a deadly scorer who is often playing off the ball.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Phreeze:</div><div class="quote_post"> If he can develop that 3 ball over the summer, he would be my definition of a true "SF," </div> Why does a true SF need 3-point range? There are different kinds of small forwards, some play outside, some play inside, some mix it up. All are valid SF's.
1. Marion - honestly, he is a player that works hard on both ends of the court and play at a high level for 40+ minutes. 2. Paul Pierce: Has been a leader, as well has played good ball and can do a lot of things offensively for his team and plays decent d. 3. Tmac: I wanted to put him at #2, and was very close to doing so. But injuries and struggles this year as well as Pierce putting up a good year and leadership made me have it like this. 4. AK47: Points, Rebounds, Assists, Blocks, Steals... He can do it all 5. Lebron James: Amazing scorer and athlete, and if he can defend and become a leader he will be #1 by a longshot. 6. Shane Battier: I just like how this guy contributes and is a good team player, defender and efficient scorer. 7. Ron Artest: I see potential for him to go up some spots depending on how he meshes with his team. 8. Melo: I actually haven't seen him enough this year, but I'm sure he will be a top 3 SF in the future. Note: Bobcats you said Diaw isn't a SF, although I understand your reasoning I think his natural position is probably a SF. Diaw isn't on my top 8, but he has surprized me a lot with his skills and his season with the Suns.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Jerry West:</div><div class="quote_post">Why does a true SF need 3-point range? There are different kinds of small forwards, some play outside, some play inside, some mix it up. All are valid SF's.</div> Because a "true" wing player can knock that shot down. He can be a threat from inside and out, something Carmelo doesn't have. Perimeter players should be able to knock down perimeter shots..
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting SkiptoMyLue11:</div><div class="quote_post">1. Marion - honestly, he is a player that works hard on both ends of the court and play at a high level for 40+ minutes. 2. Paul Pierce: Has been a leader, as well has played good ball and can do a lot of things offensively for his team and plays decent d. 3. Tmac: I wanted to put him at #2, and was very close to doing so. But injuries and struggles this year as well as Pierce putting up a good year and leadership made me have it like this. 4. AK47: Points, Rebounds, Assists, Blocks, Steals... He can do it all 5. Lebron James: Amazing scorer and athlete, and if he can defend and become a leader he will be #1 by a longshot. 6. Shane Battier: I just like how this guy contributes and is a good team player, defender and efficient scorer. 7. Ron Artest: I see potential for him to go up some spots depending on how he meshes with his team. 8. Melo: I actually haven't seen him enough this year, but I'm sure he will be a top 3 SF in the future. Note: Bobcats you said Diaw isn't a SF, although I understand your reasoning I think his natural position is probably a SF. Diaw isn't on my top 8, but he has surprized me a lot with his skills and his season with the Suns.</div> How can you put Battier, Artest and even AK47 over Melo who is a rising star in this league and has done much better than both this year. Not only does he do better statistic wise, but his team is better than both of those two teams. Not to mention Battier doesn't even start. If you honestly believe this you do not watch much NBA at all!+
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting MarvelousMelo15:</div><div class="quote_post">How can you put Battier, Artest and even AK47 over Melo who is a rising star in this league and has done much better than both this year. Not only does he do better statistic wise, but his team is better than both of those two teams. Not to mention Battier doesn't even start. If you honestly believe this you do not watch much NBA at all!+</div> First off, when talking about Melo I said I haven't seen enough of him this year! I was basing my opinion more on his last year's season. From last year I didn't feel he had an ability to create a shot and the Denver half-court offense struggled a lot going through him. He could be doing things a lot differently this year, and the offense could be smoothly running through him this year. Anyway Battier has started all 59 games he has played this year, and started 72 of 80 games last year. He is a starter in my books. I was not making the list based on potential, because then Lebron and Melo would be at the top. I even said Melo will be in the top 3 in the future, and Lebron will be #1 in the future.
1. Shawn Marion 2. Ron Artest (when playing at full potential) 3. Richard Jefferson 3. Andre Kirilenko 5. Tayshaun Prince 5. Josh Howard Those are the 6 players that fit <u>my pesonal</u> definition of complete small forwards. They can take over the game at both ends, fill up the stat sheets, and do it all for their teams. Lebron, T-Mac, and Pierce all seem like shooting guards to me. And Melo is too one-dimensional for my taste.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Bobcats:</div><div class="quote_post">First of all, Marion isn't MVP. Second, is Diaw a SF? I think of him more as a PG/SG. On the other hand, the guy is a Magic Johnson clone and can play any position, so I don't think he really has a true position.</div> Shawn Marion is MVP, he's the most complete NBA player at this point. He's all NBA team and all defensive team, and leads the NBA in rebounds, and also gives you 22 ppg a night. Boris Diaw plays all positions, thats why I put him at SF. The most versitle players play SF.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting j0se:</div><div class="quote_post">Shawn Marion is MVP, he's the most complete NBA player at this point. He's all NBA team and all defensive team, and leads the NBA in rebounds, and also gives you 22 ppg a night. Boris Diaw plays all positions, thats why I put him at SF. The most versitle players play SF.</div> Marion is an amazing player, but MVP? He doesn't really create for himself that much, and struggles in half-court sets (San Antonio in the WCF). He's a great rebounder and is a good defender though. Also, the most versatile players play SF? Huh? A PG, SG, PF, or C can't be as versatile as a SF?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Bobcats:</div><div class="quote_post">Marion is an amazing player, but MVP? He doesn't really create for himself that much, and struggles in half-court sets (San Antonio in the WCF). He's a great rebounder and is a good defender though. Also, the most versatile players play SF? Huh? A PG, SG, PF, or C can't be as versatile as a SF?</div> If you played basketball before, you know most of the time, usually the most versitle guy plays the wing, the 3. Marion can create for himself, people in the NBA think averaging 22 points a game is very simple. Yes Nash is a great player, no question. But Marion always has been an 18-20 ppg scorer in his career. Without Nash, With Marbury, with all kinds of point guards. So he's able to create his own shot. He's a very good full court player, but that doesn't take away his ability in the half court. He's extremely fast and is a slasher. Marion has done Amare's job as the primary option, and has done a great job. Marion does everything. The only weakness in Marion's game is 3pt shooting, and the man shoots around 34% from 3pt everage year. Marion is a complete player, an I would give up Madison Square Garden, the whole Knicks roster for him.
1. LeBron James 2. Paul Pierce 3. Ron Artest 4. Tracy McGrady 5. Carmelo Anthony Paul Pierce has had an amazing year. I still gotta put LeBron in first thought just because of his well.. LeBronness. Ron Artest may look like a dumb pick, but look at that Kings squad. Sure the guy may be a crazy bafoon, but his defense has rubbed off on a Kings squad that hasn't heard the words Defense for the past decade. T-Mac is one of the best big playmakers in the league adn is definetly a superstar when healthy, but because of his injuries I'm putting him at 4th. Melo has proven he can carry a team on his back with all of the Nuggets front court injruies this year. I really have trouble putting Marion over any of these guys. Because of Phoenixs high paced offense, Marion gets more rebounds and points because of the pace of the game and lots of easy looks because of Steve "MVP" Nash. Have MArion switch places with any of those other guys and I can bet you that their teams wouldn't be better. Well T-Mac when healthy is definetly better so yeah.
A couple of the posts discussed 3-point range. That's nice to have in a small forward, but if the player is athletic and can score alot without having to take it outside for a lower percentage shot he may be a more valuable SF than one who has longer range because of the pressure on the defense to constantly watch and collapse on a slashing 6'7" man going for a layup or a short pull up shot in the paint. Three point shots are a great part of the game I think but if you aren't knocking them down you create opportunities for fast breaks against you.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Diesel:</div><div class="quote_post">1. LeBron James 2. Paul Pierce 3. Ron Artest 4. Tracy McGrady 5. Carmelo Anthony Paul Pierce has had an amazing year. I still gotta put LeBron in first thought just because of his well.. LeBronness. Ron Artest may look like a dumb pick, but look at that Kings squad. Sure the guy may be a crazy bafoon, but his defense has rubbed off on a Kings squad that hasn't heard the words Defense for the past decade. [T-Mac is one of the best big playmakers in the league adn is definetly a superstar when healthy, ]but because of his injuries I'm putting him at 4th. Melo has proven he can carry a team on his back with all of the Nuggets front court injruies this year. I really have trouble putting Marion over any of these guys. Because of Phoenixs high paced offense, Marion gets more rebounds and points because of the pace of the game and lots of easy looks because of Steve "MVP" Nash. Have MArion switch places with any of those other guys and I can bet you that their teams wouldn't be better. Well T-Mac when healthy is definetly better so yeah.</div> McGrady does make the game look so easy when he's at his best. He seems to be able to shoot as well as Bryant, his hands seem as big as Duncan's, and he is catfast off the bounce. Even though hurt I put him in my top 5.
