NBA: Ranking all 30 starting small forwards for 2018-19

22. Jabari Parker, Chicago Bulls

Unpopular opinion alert: Jabari Parker might be better with the Chicago Bulls than expected. Playing him at the 3 rather than as a small-ball 4 is terrible news for the Bulls’ defense but … was anyone other than Wendell Carter Jr. and Kris Dunn really going to play much defense anyway?

No one should be acting like Jabari Parker is the root of Chicago’s inevitable struggles on that end, even if he’ll be one of the most noticeable problems since he’ll be playing out of position. He’s basically Twilight Carmelo Anthony at the 3, only without the proven scoring ability and with two ACL tears weighing him down.

Even so, NBA players typically play better in a setting where they’re happy and comfortable. After the Milwaukee Bucks cut bait, Parker got to return to his hometown of Chicago, filling a need for scoring on the wing that Denzel Valentine was unlikely to fill. Maybe his defense or injuries force him out of the starting five, but we’re clinging to optimism that an efficient, 20-points-per-game scorer is still in there somewhere. Maybe he just needed to go home to draw it out again.