[high floorParticipant]

Gotta say.. i’ve been pretty impressed with the small forward position this year. In my opinion Lebron, Durant, Kawhi & probably Giannis (debatable) have secured the top 4 spots in this positional ranking to date. Where it gets murkey is the next 4:

• Paul George
• Jimmy Butler
• Carmelo Anthony
• Gordon Hayward

Just for fun, if all 4 of these guys became available, simultaneously, at the trade deadline…. which one would you value the highest & give up the most to attain?

[BleedGreen808Participant]

1.Jimmy Butler

2.Paul George

3.Gordon Hayward

4.Carmelo Anthony

 Contract situation makes Hayward a more distant 3rd.  Keeping that in mind it’s really between Butler and George.  

[WetalkinboutpracticeParticipant]

It’s nearly a wash between PG & Jimmy G but I’ll take George.

In my opinion Paul George is the first man up after a unanimous top 4. Long (believe he checks in at 6’10" now)  rangy athletic wing who plays both ends of the floor. Can finish at the rim & equipped with a good stroke both off the bounce & in spot up situations. Does a decent job of creating for others, although a guy of his talent & skill set should be a better setup man. Can reasonably guard 1-4. Has gone toe to toe with the best player in the game in the ECF & did more than just hold his ground. 

The lone question mark with PG is his leadership skills. Had his most successful seasons (in regards to team success) with David West and to a lesser extent George Hill as the leaders in that Pacers lockeroom.

3. Gordon Heyward

4. I love Melo but his game has taken a step back since 2014.

[Dazzling Dunks and Basketball BloopersParticipant]

 1. Paul George- most complete player of the four imo. Attitude never really in question and a desirable guy to have in the locker room. It has been proven you can build a competitive team around him. Consistency is only question mark.

2. Jimmy butler- He’s very close to George but I kind of question his leadership skills and maturity a little bit. Doesn’t particularly seem to be an easy guy to get along with for players or coaches which would make me hesitate slightly. Talent wise though, he’s right there.

3. Gordon Hayward- Probably best served as a second or third option on a true championship contender, but still a tremendous all-around player with very few weaknesses who continues to get better every year.

4. Carmelo Anthony- I think it’s pretty obvious he’s a distant fourth if your talking about players teams would actually be looking to trade for right now. Still one of the most gifted scorers in the league, but he’s a past his prime volume scorer who only really plays on side of the ball. Plus he is on a horrendous contract.

 

 

 

[WetalkinboutpracticeParticipant]

 Also the best part of this conversation is the wild card in Milwaukee. The Greek Freak has no question already made tremendous strides since coming over from Greece in 2013 as he’s reaching numbers never before seen as he’s set to make his All Star debut this February.

Considering he likely has maybe one or two more "jump" years where he can take his game up a notch & come as close as possible to reaching his potential; Giannis has a chance to leap frog everyone in this conversation. He’s essentially what’d you get when if you put Lebron in Durants body, for lack of a better baseline. Once (or if) his mind & shooting catch up to is athleticism expect things to become real spooky for the rest of the league.

[BiggysmallsParticipant]

 Depends on the market. If it’s a big market, I’d take George because he’s going to be a FA after next year and probably bolt for a big market. 

In a small market, give me Butler because he’s controllable for a while. I’ll take the player and worry about attitude and fit later

 

[OhCanada-Participant]

 1.Paul George

2.Gordon Hawyward

3.Jimmy Butler

4.Melo

Butler is probably better than Hayward but since emerging as a star Butlers teams have always had chemistry issues and failed to win. He doesn’t seem to be a great teammate from this vantage point. He ran Rose and Noah out of Chicago took over the team and is now bashing his teammates on the team he is leading. Makes no sense to me. Fred Hoiberg is a great tactical coach and quite frankly he’s making him look bad.

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