NBA Preseason awards!

Sorry for the delay on the posts! (though it's likely that only my mother and Chris Wagner care anyway.) I was dealing with too much nonsense in school. In other words I locked myself in my room in a depressed hibernation associated with the NBA lockout. BUT WE'RE BACK! And in a big way. So without further ado, my preseason predictions for the NBA hardware handed out at the end of the season not named after Good Ole Larry O'Brien!

Sixth Man

Tyler Hansbrough (IND) - the only reason I'm not going with my man James Harden here is I think Thabo Sefolosha will stink it up so bad that the Thunder feel they have to start the game with The Beard instead. New Pacers acquisition David West and backup Hansbrough will bring different strengths to the power forward position for their team this year. West will slowly develop his moves in the post and work with Darren Collison on the pick-and-pop (West's bread and butter). Hansbrough will sub in to provide energy, hustle, rebounding, and even nagging defense that will yield productive minutes on most nights, especially in a compact season where we will see old legs (such as West's) wear out in the course of a game.
(runners-up: Jamal Crawford (POR) and James Harden (OKC))

Rookie

Derrick Williams (MIN) - for most people choosing this award it's between Williams and Cleveland point guard Kyrie Irving to take home the trophy from this mediocre draft class. And I like Williams to win, but more for worry about Irving than my fondness of Williams' skill set. I believe Irving will struggle out the gate. He is not not super-athletic like Russell Westbrook and Derrick Rose, he is not strong like Deron Williams, and he does not appear to have the vision of Chris Paul or even Rajon Rondo. This year I expect to see Irving have a pre-Cav Mo Williams type of season, with more scoring than setting the table for his teammates. As for Williams, he has fallen into an interesting situation. Minnesota has more young talent than in the last few years and will be a tough game every night, though will not make the playoffs. He gets to play along side guys like Kevin Love, Michael Beasley, Wes Johnson, and Ricky Rubio, who if nothing else will play an entertaining game and provide Williams with immediate success, at least from a statistical standpoint.
(runners-up Kemba Walker (CHA) and Kyrie Irving (CLE)

Defensive Player

LeBron James (MIA) - get the boos out now. I think Dwight Howard, the unquestioned biggest defensive difference maker and most dominant player on that side of the floor, will take himself out of the running with his future uncertain and the likelihood of checking out of games due to indifference on any given night. On the other hand, Miami, last years best defensive team, will likely come back better this season, adding defensive specialist veteran Shane Battier to scrappy players like Dwyane Wade, Mario Chalmers, Udonis Haslem and Joel Anthony. LeVron will be the anchor of this defense. Charged with locking down Chicago's most dominant scorer Derrick Rose in last season's Eastern Conference Finals, LeBron bothered and disrupted the explosive point guard. LeBron can guard positions 1-4, and will return to shut down opposing defenses for the NBA's villain Heat.
(runners-up DeAndre Jordan (LAC) And Joakim Noah (CHI))

MVP

Kevin Durant (OKC) - Yes, I acknowledge that I am a fan of the team that KD plays for. But some often forget that Durant was many NBA writers' favorite to take home the award before last season. What hurt him last year was the emergence of Russell Westbrook as a bonafide star. The Mavericks and the Lakers have lost key contributors from their recent title teams and the Clippers and Grizzlies have some questions to answer. The West is Oklahoma City's conference to lose this year. Durant and Westbrook, in their 5th and 4th years in the league, respectively, will play to compliment each other's strength instead of ignore them, and quiet the questions about their youth and inexperience hindering a deep playoff run or spurts of league domination. Durant, one of the games best scorers, and maybe more importantly, teammates, will help but the Thunder in the driver's seat to go past the Western Conference Finals, where their season ended a year ago. With many of the "super-teams" lacking a clear number one guy, Durant will emerge to win this years Most Valuble Player.
(runners-up Chris Paul (LAC) and Rose (CHI))

First Team All-NBA
G Derrick Rose - CHI
G Dwyane Wade - MIA
F Kevin Durant - OKC
F LeBron James - MIA
C Dwight Howard - ORL/LAL?/NJ?/DAL?

Second Team All-NBA
G Kobe Bryant - LAL
G Chris Paul - LAC
F Carmelo Anthony - NYK
F Blake Griffin - LAC
C LaMarcus Aldridge - POR

Third Team All-NBA
G Russell Westbrook - OKC
G Deron Williams - NJN
F Kevin Love - MIN
F Zach Randolph - MEM
C Tyson Chandler - NYK