The 2016-17 NBA season is just around the corner. Here are my predictions for the season, including who will win the major individual and team prizes.

James Harden
The beard will be playing point guard in 2016-17 and relied upon to run the Rockets offence even more as well as do what he does best – get buckets!

With Pat Beverley sidelined and no other PG on the roster considered strong enough to start, James Harden will slot over to PG and if the preseason is anything to go by then he is in for a huge season.

He will be putting up Westbrook type numbers and be a real chance to put up a triple double every single night. In 29 minutes a game in the preseason, Harden averaged a staggering 20.2 points, 10.7 assists and 6.2 rebounds a game.

The Rockets will need to make the playoffs for Harden to get the MVP Award. I think that will be the difference between he and Westbrook in the hunt for the MVP. Ryan Anderson, Eric Gordon, a much improved Clint Capela, Nene, Brewer, Beverely and Ariza will all have to stay healthy for the rockets to be a chance but I believe Harden will put the team on his back and have an outstanding year in new coach Mike D’Antoni’s system.

Honourable mentions
Russell Westbrook – Russ will be Russ, he will play with a chip on his shoulder even more than usual after the whole Kevin Durant saga. Set to have another huge season stuffing the stat sheet trying to push OKC into the playoffs. It could well be a career season for Westbrook.

Steph Curry and Kevin Durant – These two could average 29 a night and only play three quarters in the majority of Warriors’ games. Expecting a lot of blow outs this season for GS.

LeBron James – The King will lead his Cavs to the top of the east again although I don’t think he will warrant the MVP award with more nights off this season in preparation for the playoffs.

Paul George – The Pacers are my sleepers in the East this season. Their roster is so well rounded with Jeff Teague, Thad Young and Al Jefferson adding a ton of offensive power. Paul George will continue to lead the team and it could well be the year he establishes himself as a top three playerin the league.

Anthony Davis – The Brow has been quietly forgotten about in the conversation of next big superstar in the league with the emergence of Karl Anthony-Towns and a plethora of injuries. The Pelicans have let go of Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon which will mean 25+ more shots a night will now be available.

Alvin Gentry will look to his superstar to shoot the ball even more. We all know AD’s shot blocking talent and Davis will be out to improve his team’s record significantly this season and reclaim his spot as the next superstar in the league.

Champions
The Warriors – They assembled arguably the most talented team in NBA History in the offseason. A move which left most NBA fans temporarily speechless and checking the date to see if it was April Fools day.

The Durant move will go down as one of the most shocking signings in NBA history. Adding a recent MVP and scoring leader of the NBA in four of the last seven seasons to a record breaking 73-9 squad.

Sure, the Warriors lost a few players in Andrew Bogut, Harrison Barnes and Leandro Barbosa but the additions of David West, Zaza Pachulia and JaVale McGee on the cheap with a top three talent in the league in Kevin Durant have the Warriors primed to take out the 2016-17 season.

Yes there will be an adjustment period but it will work and run on all cylinders at some point.

The Warriors are now in the unbelievable position that in crunch time they can roll out a five-man small ball line up of Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Durant and Draymond Green. That line up literally contains three of the top twelve best scorers in the entire league from last season and two from the top five.

It also contains two of the most versatile defenders in the entire league in Draymond and Iggy. LeBron produced one of the best finals series performances in history and defeated the Warriors last season but I don’t think he and the Cavs can do it again.

Honourable mentions
Cavs – I’m predicting the Cavs will meet the Warriors in the finals for a third straight season.

Clippers – A healthier Chris Paul and Blake Griffin will finally get the Clippers to the Western Conference Finals.

Indiana – Indiana will be the Cavs biggest challengers in the East as long as their new team can mesh and play to its potential. Paul George will be looking to challenge LeBron in what will be a salivating match up.

6th Man of the year
Enes Kanter – The Turkish talent will be instant offence for the Thunder and will play a ton of minutes with Ibaka now a member of the Magic. Steven Adams will get the majority of minutes at centre but as back up at the five and playing at the four alongside Adams to finish games I see Kanter producing significant contributions and getting more chances with the ball with Durant no longer on the floor.

Kanter is a huge threat in the paint and he’s always working on extending his range. His defence has never been a strength but numbers often count the most in the sixth man race.

Honourable mentions
Brandon Jennings – Jennings was a great pick up for the Knicks. Still finding his feet and returning from a ruptured Achilles he has shown some glimpses of flashy play already in the preseason. People shouldn’t forget how talented Jennings is and how nice he was looking in Detroit right before his major injury.

If D-Rose goes down at some point – sorry to say it but it’s almost inevitable – then Jennings will start which could ruin his chances for this award if it’s long term.

Jamal Crawford – The award should just about be called the Jamal Crawford award. He’s the only man to win it three times and in his role at the Clippers again I think he will be up there. He consistently adds spark to the team and will do the same again this season.

Defensive player of the year
DeAndre Jordan – DJ has always been one of the most impressive defensive centres in the league swatting numerous attempted lay-ups every night. The change to intentional foul rules in the offseason should benefit DeAndre and see him with more court time and chances to impact even more players trying to get the hoop against the Clippers.

2016/17 is the year DeAndre finally gets the defensive player of the year award and the Clippers make the western conference finals.

Honourable mentions
Rudy Gobert – The 7 foot 2 Frenchman has all the potential in the world. If he can stay healthy he will block a ton of shots, affect even more and grabs double digit boards every single night. His defence will help Utah sneak into the playoffs.

Kawhi Leonard – Will be gunning for his third straight season as the winner of this award. The Spurs play great team defence and he’s surrounded by high IQ basketball players which only helps Kawhi show off his impressive defence and ability to guard anyone on the court with ridiculous length and reach for his height.

Draymond Green – For his versatility, hustle and tenacity when defending he is always a candidate for this award. His impact in the finals last year was shown when he was suspended during the finals against the Cavs and it changed the whole series. Draymond’s impact for the Warriors on the defensive end should never be slept on and it was a huge factor in the teams record regular season in 2015-16.

Hassan Whiteside – On the back of a huge contract in the offseason, the Snapchat king will be looking to have a career season and play even more minutes I feel. He has the ability to average 15 rebounds and three blocks a night but with Miami having a much younger look about it this season I don’t know if the team defence will be good enough to help him land the award.

Most Improved player of the year
Devin Booker – The Suns have made it clear Booker is their man for the future with the 19 year old locked into starting at shooting guard moving Knight to the bench.

If the back end of last season and preseason is anything to go by then Booker could be averaging nearly 20 points a night up from 13.8ppg his overall average last season.

The Suns will have to win some games this season for his impact to show so I’m tossing between Lavine and Booker for the MIP player of 2016-17.

Honourable mentions
Zach LaVine – Coach Thibodeau is going to play a LaVine a ton of minutes and he is going to prosper in a young talented growing Timberwolves roster. He finished last season post the all star break averaging 16.4 points a night on 48 per cent shooting in 35mins a night. If he can replicate that then he will be challenging for the MIP award no doubt.

D’Angelo Russell – With Kobe gone and no real primary scorer the Lakers will look to their young PG to run the show and get highly rated rookie Brandon Ingram and teammates some good looks. If the summer league and preseason are anything to go by then this season is going to be a break out for D’Angelo Russell.

Jabari Parker – Post all star break last season in 28 games Jabari finished averaging nearly 19 points a game on 49.8-per cent shooting to go along with 6.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists. If he can come out and produce those numbers again consistently he will be in with a chance for the MIP award.

Dennis Schroder – The battle for point guard minutes in Atlanta has ended with Jeff Teague no longer in the picture. Dennis played around 20 minutes a game last season and will be playing possibly 30-35 this season. He will have a far greater impact on games and produce larger numbers than ever before in his career. He will also get to run a pick and roll with Dwight Howard which should be interesting.

Rookie of the year
Buddy Hield – The Pelicans will start with Buddy playing off the bench in a sixth man role this season but I think he will start once he gets more comfortable as the season goes on. No one on the roster can spread the floor like he can and Davis will need shooters around him.

Buddy was the best player in college last year for a reason and he should show that once he settles in this season. Once Jrue Holiday comes back I think he will get Buddy much more opportunities to score and he might just take out rookie of the year in one of the more unpredictable awards for the season with Ben Simmons going down hurt.

Honourable mentions
Joel Embiid – I think Embiid on any other team where he was starting would definitely get R.O.Y this season due to his impressive offensive arsenal, shot blocking ability and rebounding. He has been the story of the preseason with the polarising figure finally getting on an NBA court after being drafted in 2014.

He has the potential to be an all star one day but with Jahlil Okafor, Ben Simmons, Nerlens Noel and even Dario Saric at times all being front-court players I don’t know if he plays over 25mins a game this if everyone is healthy.

Jaylen Brown – The Celtics are already a playoff team and Brown will fit nicely into their rotation with the high flying forward hoping to get his NBA Career of to a fast start.

Coach Stevens is credited as being one of the most intelligent coaches in the league and he will get the best out of Jaylen. He already has great defence and that alone will get him time on the court but his improving shooting should see him put up decent numbers on the stats sheet too.