NBA Season Preview: 5 best perimeter defenders

When the game is on the line, who is the guy keying in on the opponent’s best offensive threat? Here are the five best perimeter defenders in the NBA today.

Defense wins championships, even in a high-scoring game like basketball. Making it difficult for an opponent to put the ball through the hoop only aids in a team’s quest to win an NBA title. Though rim protection may be a more obvious sign of a good defense, there is a lot to be said about the lock-down defenders out on the perimeter.

The NBA has a dearth of elite wing defenders in the pace-and-space era. It’s insanely difficult to hold one’s own in on-ball defense without being allowed to hand check. Yet, these five defensive stars still seem to do just fine on that end of the floor.

Here are the five best perimeter defenders in the NBA entering the 2016-17 NBA season:

Apr 22, 2016; Memphis, TN, USA; Memphis Grizzlies guard Tony Allen (9) during the fourth quarter against the San Antonio Spurs in game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at FedExForum. Spurs defeated Grizzlies 96-87. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports

5. Tony Allen, Memphis Grizzlies SG

Memphis Grizzlies shooting guard Tony Allen will be 35 years old this upcoming NBA season, but he is still one of the best lockdown perimeter defenders in the game. Allen has cultivated a fine NBA career for himself with defensive acumen and is a five-time selection of an NBA All-Defensive team during his time with Memphis.

Last year might have been a down year for Allen but this probably had to do with him missing 18 games for the 2015-16 Grizzlies and playing on a team with a ton of also-rans once a litany of injuries set in mid-season. He was still second All-Defensive last year.

Since arriving in Memphis in 2010, Allen has been the best perimeter defender over that lengthy stretch. His 1.7 steals per game, and 2.7 defensive Box Plus-Minus has made Allen a defensive dynamo for the Grit N’ Grind Grizzlies. Even though he’s generally a minus on ofense, Allen is responsible for 16.5 Defensive Win Shares and a 10.0 VORP over the last six NBA seasons.

Allen is by no means a Hall of Fame caliber player. However, his No. 9 Memphis jersey will one day hang in the FedEx Forum rafters when he calls it a career. Age is catching up to Allen, but he’s this decade’s version of Bruce Bowen: the best defense-first perimeter player in basketball.

Mar 9, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Memphis Grizzlies forward Matt Barnes (22) shoots against Boston Celtics guard Avery Bradley (0) in the first half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

4. Avery Bradley, Boston Celtics SG

For the 2016-17 Boston Celtics to emerge as the best team in the Eastern Conference (not named the Cleveland Cavaliers), stellar shooting guard Avery Bradley will need to again elevate this defense.

Bradley was a highly touted prospect coming out of high school. After a one-and-done campaign at the University of Texas, Bradley largely underwhelmed in the NBA initially because he really couldn’t shoot. After a few years working on his craft, Bradley is a reliable shooter but his best attribute is still his aggressive perimeter defense.

Bradley is a two-time All-Defensive selection, making his the first All-Defensive team for the first time in 2015-16. Bradley has gotten better as a shooter under Stevens, but more importantly has become an absolute stud defensively.

Bradley has 117 steals last season, and contributed 2.8 Defensive Win Shares. In his young career, Bradley already has 10.1 Defensive Win Shares in 358 career games.

With Boston expected to take a leap forward, Bradley will continue to climb up the list as one of the better perimeter defensive players in the NBA. He does have great teammates on the defensive end, but Bradley sets the tone on that end of the floor for Boston.

Oct 6, 2016; San Jose, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) jogs onto the court prior to the game against the Sacramento Kings at the SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

3. Klay Thompson, Golden State Warriors SG

Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors is known for his dead-eye shooting. It’s a justified reputation since Thompson is one of the best pure-shooters in NBA history. He’s also an incredibly underrated perimeter player defensively. His numbers aren’t really eye-popping. However, Thompson is the panacea for Golden State in backcourt defense.

Essentially, he is required to guard the best ball handler Golden State goes up against each night. Stephen Curry doesn’t have the physicality, the wingspan, or really the discipline to be anything more than a solid help defender. Thompson’s poise defensively allows Curry to be at his best defensively as a pick pocket.

Golden State has other elite defensive players like forwards Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala, but Thompson’s defensive acumen is one of the most underrated in basketball. Thompson might actually have his best season defensively for one reason: Kevin Durant is now on the Warriors. Durant has undeniable length and could aid in rim protection if he feels so inclined. We’ve never seen Durant put it all together defensively, but if he does, expect Thompson to make a quantum leap on that end of the floor as well.

Apr 7, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade (3) dribbles the ball as Chicago Bulls guard Jimmy Butler (21) defends during the second half at American Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

2. Jimmy Butler, Chicago Bulls SG

Who knows how good the 2016-17 Chicago Bulls will be this season? It’s a cool story with Dwyane Wade and Rajon Rondo coming over in 2016 NBA free agency to join Jimmy Butler out on the perimeter, but will that yield winning basketball for second-year head coach Fred Hoiberg?

Without question, the best player on the Bulls is Butler. He is a two-time NBA All-Star, an Olympic Gold medalist, and a three-time All-Defensive second teamer. Frankly, he’ll have to be in 2016-17 for Chicago to be successful. Wade is old and Rondo doesn’t care about defense.

Butler has the physicality to guard top ball-handlers one through three. He’ll have to do that to make up for Rondo’s lackadaisical effort on that end of the floor. Many feel that Butler is a top-15 talent in the league. Now it’s his time to shine.

He has graded positively in Defensive Box Plus-Minus in all five of his NBA seasons since coming out of Marquette University. Butler has been responsible for at least 2.6 Defensive Win Shares each year since his second NBA season.

Butler has quick hands (1.4 steals per game), adept on the glass (4.5 rebounds per game), and he’s even a solid shot blocker for a wing (0.5 blocks per game). With him needing to carry the Bulls defensively, he’ll have more eyes on him this winter than ever before.

Apr 30, 2016; San Antonio, TX, USA; San Antonio Spurs small forward Kawhi Leonard (2) smiles before game one of the second round of the NBA Playoffs against the Oklahoma City Thunder at AT&T Center. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports

1. Kawhi Leonard, San Antonio Spurs SF

When it comes to perimeter defense in the NBA, there is Kawhi Leonard of the San Antonio Spurs and there’s everybody else. Leonard is the two-time reigning Defensive Player of the Year. He is coming off his first All-NBA first team selection and his first trip to the NBA All-Star game in 2015-16.

Leonard is the new reluctant superstar of the Gregg Popovich Spurs now that Tim Duncan has called it a career. Though he’s become an amazing offensive player in his own right the last few years, what Leonard has done defensively in five years with the Spurs is otherworldly.

He’s averaged 1.8 steals per game, 6.3 rebounds per game, and 0.7 blocks per game at the small forward position. Leonard is responsible for 19.5 defensive win shares in five seasons. His Defensive Box Plus-Minus has been 2.9 throughout his career.

It’ll be almost impossible for Leonard to be better than he has been on the defensive end of the floor. Even if he regresses ever so slightly because of miscues by his teammates, Leonard is still the best perimeter defender in the NBA by a massive margin.