NBA Season Preview

The NBA season is less than a week away and basketball fans are excited. They want to see what the defending champs will do and if Duncan can match Jordan with 6 rings. Lebron James has returned to Cleveland with much anticipation as well. This will be one of the most anticipated seasons in league history. So there is only one thing left to do, I must give my predictions for what will happen.
Here is my NBA Season Preview for the 2014-2015 season.

My Predicted Playoff Field
Eastern Conference
1 Chicago Bulls
2 Cleveland Cavaliers
3 Washington Wizards
4 Toronto Raptors
5 Miami Heat
6 Atlanta Hawks
7 Charlotte Bobcats
8 Boston Celtics

Western Conference
1 San Antonio Spurs
2 Dallas Mavericks
3 Los Angeles Clippers
4 Portland Trail Blazers
5 Golden State Warriors
6 Oklahoma City Thunder
7 Los Angeles Lakers
8 Houston Rockets

League MVP
Dirk Nowitzki

I think Dirk has one more teriffic run in him and I honestly think he and the Mavs are the biggest threat to a San Antonio repeat. KD is hurt to start the year and it will take LeBron some time to gel with his new teammates. That makes the race for MVP wide open. Do not be surprised if Kobe is a serious threat to the award. Stef Curry will also be a force in the race as will (gasp) Joakim Noah. John Wall will be a strong finisher in this race and Derrick Rose is another name to watch.

6th Man
Taj Gibson

Gibson is the best player off the bench for anybody. He will put up the best numbers, and his team could easily finish with the top record in the East. This guy will certainly contend for this award again if nothing else.

Coach of the Year
Brad Stevens

The Celtics 2nd year coach will get coach of the year for leading the young Celtics to the playoffs against expectations. Once the Brooklyn Nets fall apart again without their best player, Paul Pierce, the Celtics will fill a spot in the wide open East. This is something that is not widely predicted and being the biggest surprise should land Stevens in this spot as frontrunner for Coach of the Year.

Rookie of the Year
Jabari Parker

Parker IMO is the best rookie, in a good situation to succeed and therefore will have the biggest impact. This guy is going to be really good for a really long time.

5 Other Bold Predictions
1) Not only will Jabari Parker win rookie of the year, but he will also be an all-star
2) Milwaukee however with Jason Kidd as Head Coach will be a bottom 5 team
3) The closest race in the league will be between the Celtics and the Knicks for the final playoff spot in the East
4) Kobe finishes top 5 in scoring again
5) After the season a loud portion of Lebron's fans will claim that he needs more "help" and I will be able to add to this article

Conference Finals
Spurs over Mavs
Wizards over Heat

I forsee a Derrick Rose injury late in the year after the Bulls clinch the one seed. That injury opens it up for the 4/5 seed to possibly upset the 1 in the postseason. The veteran Heat take advantage and force the issue to get in. The Wizards ultimately end up being too much for the Heat.
The Spurs in Mavs are destined for another epic postseason clash. The only question is when that clash will happen in this postseason.

Who Wins It All?
San Antonio Spurs

Honestly, they are the best run team and the best team period. If these guys stay healthy, this thing really should not be that close. They are a fantastic team from top to bottom and as long as they got 21, I am not picking against these guys.

-Noland