NBA: Ranking all 30 starting small forwards for 2017-18

23. Taurean Prince, Atlanta Hawks

Perhaps this is a little high for a rookie who averaged 5.7 points and 2.7 rebounds per game on .400/.324/.787 shooting splits last year, but those numbers — and his 9.8 PER — don’t tell the whole story.

Prince may only be entering his second year in the league, but he’s already 23 years old and showed real signs of life down the stretch last season for the Atlanta Hawks. He even took over the starting job for 10 games, posting 11.4 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.

In six playoff games, Prince put up 11.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game on 55.8 percent shooting from the field. Even though 3-point accuracy will be a point of emphasis moving forward, this kid has the two-way potential to put up improved numbers in 2017-18, especially with a clear path to minutes on a tanking team.