The shooting guard spot in the NBA might be the weakest it has been in a long time.  Even the good shooting guards don’t shoot a high percentage and the ones that do are very one-dimensional.  Keeping that in mind it was very difficult to come up with a true top ten but I did my best.  Eric Gordon just missed the cut but I fully expect him to find his way back if he can stay healthy.  Joe Johnson also just fell short of a top ten spot but I don’t expect him to make it back.  With the influx of talent the Nets brought in this off-season, Johnson won’t get nearly the touches he has in the past and that will definitely affect his stock.

10.  Manu Ginobili- Manu is no longer the killer he used to be but is still a very serviceable two guard in the NBA.  Ginobili struggles mightily with his shot last season but still does enough other things well to land at number ten.  Ginobili only played about 24 minutes a night but still managed to score 11.8 points to go along with 4.6 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 1.3 steals a night.

9.  Demar DeRozan- DeRozan has just begun to tap into his freak athleticism and it has shown in his improvement on the court.  He is a fantastic slasher who can knock down free throws when he gets to the line.  The problem with DeRozan is that he doesn’t get to the line enough.  He settles for the three far too often, which is not a good idea, when you consider that he is a terrible three-point shooter.  He shoots under 25 percent from that distance during his career.  DeRozan did put up career best numbers in points, rebounds and assists a game last year and should only get better.

8.  Klay Thompson- while all of his shooting numbers went down from his rookie season, Thompson improved his all-around game enough to land at the eight spot.  Thompson averaged 16.6 points, 2.2 assists, 3.7 rebounds and one steal a game.  The question now is whether Thompson will continue to improve with the addition of Andre Iguodala since he will definitely be losing some minutes this season?

7.  J.R. Smith- Smith’s shooting percentages weren’t very impressive last year but he compensated for that by shooting all the time.  Since the Knicks only have one other guy that can legitimately score the ball, Mike Woodson didn’t seem to mind one bit.  In fact, Smith played well enough to average career highs in minutes as well as points and rebounds a game.  Smith averaged 18.1 points to go along with 2.7 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals a game.

6.  O.J. Mayo- Mayo found new life as a member of the Dallas Mavericks last year, which opened the door for a big free agent contract with the Bucks this off-season.  Mayo made huge improvements to every major statistical category other than turnovers from his previous two years in Memphis.  Mayo finished the season averaging 15. 3 points, 4.4 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals a game.

5.  Andre Iguodala- might be the worst free throw shooter from the guard spot of anybody in NBA history.  At least that’s what he showed us last year when he shot 57.4 percent from the charity stripe.  Luckily for Nuggets fans he didn’t go to the line often enough for that to make a difference.  Even though his scoring output has decreased dramatically, Iguodala does virtually everything else on the floor well.  Iguodala can pass, rebound and be a lock down defender which is why he will be a great fit with the Warriors.

4.  Monta Ellis- Ellis is another two guard who puts up huge numbers, even though he shoots a terrible percentage from both the three-point line and the field.  Ellis isn’t a bad shooter but doesn’t always make the best decisions.  He should get a lot more open looks this season playing next to Jose Calderon and Dirk Nowitzki.  Even with his poor shot selection, Ellis still managed to score 19.2 points a night to go along with 6 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 2.1 steals.

3.  Dwyane Wade- Wade’s scoring numbers dropped to the second lowest average of his career even though he shot a career high of 52.1 percent from the field.  What does that mean? Wade isn’t the focal point of the offense, and that seems to suit him just fine.  At this point of his career, Wade knows where he fits in and what it takes to win Championships.  Even during a “down Year,” Wade averaged 21.2 points to go along with 5.1 assists, 5 rebounds and 1.9 steals a game.

2.  James Harden- Harden only started seven games in his entire NBA career before being traded to the Houston Rockets at the beginning of last season.  Finally getting a lead role and starter’s minutes really did wonders for Hardens career.  Harden was able to lead the Rockets into the playoffs on the strength of his breakout season.  He averaged 25.9 points, 5.8 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 steals a game.

1.  Kobe Bryant- even coming off a brutal injury, Bryant will still be the most dominant shooting guard in the league this upcoming season.  He puts in way too much work for that not to happen.  In what some consider the most underachieving Laker team of all-time, Bryant all but carried Los Angeles into the playoffs last season before he got injured.  He averaged 27.3 points to go along with 6 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 1.4 steals a game.