NBA: 10 things to look forward to this season

16 days to go. The NBA 2013-14 season promises to be one of the most exciting season in recent years. Here’s a list of the top 10 things to look forward to this season.

10. The Rookie Class

There’s always a huge amount of interest in the induction of fresh blood in to the NBA. While this year’s draft class doesn’t really stir up that much interest, there are always rookies to look forward to. Rookies like Kelly Olynyk are already key players in their respective teams. It’ll be interesting to see how much these rookies impact their team’s fortunes.

9. Ricky Rubio

Rubio’s a rising star. The Timberwolves point guard is coming of a great season in which he established himself as a point guard to be reckoned with. Rubio is a talented player, an excellent passer, but he has his weaknesses. Defensive spacing, turnovers and shooting are key areas he needs to improve upon.

Has Rubio improved on those aspects? If he has, he’ll form a solid one-two punch with Kevin Love at Minnesota.

8. Kyrie Irving

Irving is a star in the making. The 2011 Rookie of the year is the focal point of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Along with Andrew Bynum, Anderson Varejao and Dion Waiters, the Cavaliers finally have a team which can hold it’s ground against the top seeds in the league.

But they’ll still be banking on the superstar, Irving, to carry them past the regular season. Can Kyrie deliver the immense expectations placed on his young shoulders?

7. Jason kidd and the Brooklyn Nets

Quite possibly one of the most interesting teams this season. The deep pocketed Nets have assembled an all All-Star roster. They have also hired recently retired veteran Jason Kidd as their head coach.

The Nets squad is capable of being a championship team, if they gel well. Their starting roster has 3 new players. They have a new head coach, which automatically means new plays, new rotation systems, new strategies, etc. There will also be a considerable amount of locker room egos drifting around. Will Kidd be able to settle these issues and improve on last year’s result as the 4th seed in the conference? We need to wait and watch.

6. Greg Oden’s return

Oden’s journey in the NBA is one of the saddest ones in recent times. The #1 draft pick (ahead of Kevin Durant), Oden was considered a once in a decade talent due to his ability to make plays on both ends of the court and his combination of size, skill and fluidity. But consecutive injuries ravaged his body and have reduced him to just 82 games his entire career.

Once thought of to be a talent better than Kevin Durant, Oden has never been able to showcase his complete potential. He has played in the NBA for 7 seasons and has played exactly one season worth of games. Let’s hope that after he returns, he’ll be able to show what he’s really capable of.

5. Paul George and The Pacers

The young Pacers captured the minds of every basketball fan with their stellar defence and talented players. They reached the Conference Finals last season and will be hoping to better last season’s results, this year.

Paul George has been signed to a $90 million, 5 year deal and he will be itching to prove his worth. They have re-signed David West. Roy Hibbert completes the “Big 3″ of Indiana. Danny Granger’s return will add the much needed spark on offence. The Pacers are stronger than ever before. Will Paul George be able to lead them to the title?

4. Dwight Howard and The Rockets

Howard’s decision to join The Rockets was the biggest move in an offseason of big moves. The best center of our generation has gone to Houston after a horrible year with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Houston has a team which resembles the Orlando Magic team Howard took to the finals. Howard joins another exciting talent in Houston’s Star Shooting guard, James Harden. The two already have plans to adorn their fingers with rings (NBA rings, I mean). Though it might seem impossible this season, with the LeBron James led Miami heat in full form, it certainly might be a possibility in the near future. Irrespective of that, D12′s decision to join the Rockets is extremely interesting, to say the least.

3. The return of Derrick Rose

He’s back. Derrick Rose returns to the NBA after sitting on the sidelines for more than a year, a decision made entirely by him. After full recovering, both physically and psychologically, the youngest MVP in the history of NBA is returning this season.

His return makes the Chicago Bulls one of the legitimate title contenders in the Eastern Conference. His first NBA game, not counting preseason ones, will be against the mighty Miami Heat. Will Rose be able to bounce back to his MVP level pf play right from the word go? I can’t wait to know the answer to this question.

2. LeBron James

Everything about James is exciting. The best player on the planet has recently stated that he’s never been more comfortable or confident at Miami. On top of that, he’s supposedly improved over the season. Is that even possible?

Fresh from winning the NBA Championship, the newly wed James will be hoping to pick up from where he left off. With Dwyane Wade‘s play declining due to his knees, James’ role on offence has increased even more. He’ll be gunning to complete a three peat and also to win fifth MVP award. One would be hard pressed to outrightly deny both those statements.

1. The Playoff battles

The most exciting thing to look forward to this NBA season is the playoff battles. Last season, we witnessed some of the hardest fought playoff battles in NBA history. This season, somehow, every team seems to have improved and this only makes the playoffs even more interesting.

Last season, there were 4 maybe 5 legitimate title contenders. This season, more than a quarter of the league is contending for the title, and not just in name. One simply cannot predict which team will end up on top. The return of injured players (Rose, Howard) and the current form of the league’s superstars make this season’s playoffs the most anticipated one in recent times.