USC Basketball: DeMar DeRozan Listed Among Top 5 Current Small Forwards

Former USC standout and All-Freshman team member DeMar DeRozan is still among the top of the league even at the ripe age of 34. DeRozan is still at the top of his game and is coming off one productive season with the Chicago Bulls. 

Because of his stellar play, Hoop Hypes Frank Urbina ranks DeRozan among the top five current small forwards. 

“The runner-up for Clutch Player of the Year after finishing third last year, DeMar DeRozan is aging like a fine wine, putting up a 24/5/4 stat line in 2023-24 and remaining one of the best midrange scorers in the NBA today,” wrote Urbina. 

“It’s unfortunate that the 34-year-old is spending the end stages of his prime toiling away for a pretty mediocre team in the Chicago Bulls when he could be doing big things for a contender somewhere. 

Nonetheless, DeRozan is building up his Hall of Fame resume, as he’s about to enter the Top 30 in scoring in NBA history, and with his game aging as well as it has so far, we should see a few more seasons of good basketball out of the Compton native.”

The 24-year-old is coming off another solid 2023-24 campaign, averaging 24.0 points per game, 5.3 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.1 steals while shooting 48 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from behind the arc. 

The other four in front of DeRozan in this list are Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard, Suns’ Kevin Durant, Lakers’ LeBron James, and Celtics’ Jayson Tatum. DeRozan finished as the runner-up in Clutch Player of the Year and is a six-time All-Star. The three-time All-NBA member still has a lot left in the tank. 

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