Small Forward Rotation
Starter: Kent Bazemore
Kent Bazemore is a player capable of playing shooting guard or the wing, but with this current team’s composition it makes much more since to start him at small forward. Considering Evan Turner hasn’t started more than half a season since 2015, the Bazemore trade looks better by the day.
Bazemore is a sturdy defender who should hopefully fill the shoes of Moe Harkless well.What sets him apart from Harkless however, is his ability to knock down shots from beyond the arc. Bazemore has hit 35.5 percent of his 3-point shots over the last five years, 84.4 percent of which were assisted last year.
This indicates Bazemore knows how to position himself to stretch the defense and make opposing teams respect his shot. At least they better respect his shot, because his position in the starting lineup is depending on it. A pair of capable players lay behind him in the pecking order just waiting for a chance to prove they’re worth a shot.
Bench: Mario Hezonja, Nassir Little
Mario Hezonja is a formerly highly touted prospect out of Croatia, who was selected No. 5 overall in the 2015 NBA Draft. He is seeping with natural talent, but just hasn’t had the right environment to showcase his full potential. However, the Orlando Magic have one of the worst development teams in the league and the New York Knicks are extremely dysfunctional. Perhaps the Portland Trail Blazers will be the team to coax out his abilities on a fire sale price.
Nassir Little was originally projected as a top five selection in this year’s draft before running into obstacles at North Carolina. Little just might be one of the most talented and athletically gifted players on the team, but he’s far from a finished product. Expect to see Little in a reduced role this year, similar to Simons and Trent Jr last year.