With the NBA 2016-2017 season right around the corner, we will soon get to see this very interesting NBA season play out. One thing that makes this season interesting is that we will likely have a new MVP. It is difficult to determine who will walk away with this career milestone at the end of the season, but I can narrow it down to five solid candidates. Steph Curry, Lebron James, and Kevin Durant aren’t any of them. With the Warriors being so heavily stacked with talent, I don't think it is possible for any one player to put up MVP numbers. Lebron is officially out of the MVP talk because of his age. His stats last year were very impressive, but not MVP impressive, and they should decline slightly more this season due to aging.

[In order]

5. Damian Lillard

Damian Lillard is 26 years-old, and has a very bright future in the NBA as well. He averaged 25.1 points, 6.8 assists, 4.0 rebounds, 0.9 steals, and 0.4 blocks a game, while averaging 35.7 minutes a game. He shot 37.5% from outside the arc and 45.0% from inside the arc. At Damian Lillard’s age, his stat line should improve this season. I can see Lillard averaging about 27 points, 7-8 assists, 4-5 rebounds, 1 steal, and the same amount of blocks per a game for the 2016-2017 season. If Lillard can put up a stat line like that and take the underdog Trailblazers to the playoffs again like last season, when they went as a 5th seed in an extremely competitive western conference, he as well has a solid chance as an MVP. I see Damian Lillard winning at least one MVP within the next five seasons.

4. Paul George

Paul George is one of the most exciting players to watch and at the age of only 26, his future in the league seems very bright. Coming back from his horrific leg injury that caused him to miss the 2014-2015 season, Paul George averaged 23.1 points, 4.1 assists, 7.0 rebounds, 1.9 steals, and 0.4 blocks a game while playing an average of 34.8 minutes a game. He also shot 37.1% from outside the arc and 44.7% from inside the arc. Paul George’s leg injury could have easily ended his career in the NBA or at least changed who he is as a player, but instead he came out and put up that all-star quality stat line. The scary thing about Paul George is he is just now entering his NBA prime, so we should see this stat line improve for the next 3-5 seasons. The Pacers struggled last season, and had George surrounded by some good talent, but no one great, and they also lacked the depth needed to make a deep playoff run. This off-season they fixed that by adding Jeff Teague to replace George Hill, and Al Jefferson to take the starting job at center. Both players are improvements in my opinion, but that argument is for another day. What matters is Paul George is now surrounded by even better talent than last season, while remaining the go-to man for the team, so I expect his stat line to increase even more. I can see Paul George averaging 25-27 points, 4-6 assists, 8-9 rebounds, 2 steals, and about the same amount of blocks per a game. With a stat line like this, George would definitely be an MVP candidate. This year will be a very big year for the Pacers and Paul George.

3. DeMarcus Cousins

Cousins is definitely the best big man in the league, but can he be the most valuable player in the league this season? Boogie averaged 26.9 points, 3.3 assists, 11.5 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 1.4 blocks a game, while averaging 34.6 minutes a game. He shot 47.3% from inside the arc, and 33.3% from behind the arc. These are very impressive numbers, but Boogie’s biggest set back is his behavior. He loses his temper on the court too often, and mentally breaks down. The NBA MVP can by no means be mentally weak. His behavior on the court does not reflect how an MVP should act. If Boogie can get his mind right this season and improve from last season (at the age of 26 he should), he has a solid chance at being the league MVP.

2. James Harden

Harden is a controversial player because of his poor defense and his ability to obnoxiously draw fouls, but it is important to not let this distract us from Harden’s phenomenal talent. Harden averaged 29.0 points, 7.5 assists, 6.1 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 0.6 blocks per a game, while playing a league high 38.1 minutes a game. He shot 49.4% from inside the arc and 35.9% from outside the arc. Like Westbrook, one of Harden’s biggest set backs is his turnovers per a game, averaging a league high 4.6 a game, but Harden’s turnovers isn’t the biggest problem for him winning an MVP next season. If Harden wants a shot at winning an MVP next season, he needs to play defense. This offseason he stated he will be playing defense now, and if he holds true to his word, he has a solid shot at winning the MVP. If he can play defense, I believe the only thing in the way of him winning the MVP is Russell Westbrook.

1. Russell Westbrook

Last season, Westbrook averaged 23.5 points, 10.4 assists, 7.8 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 0.3 blocks per a game, while playing an average 34.4 minutes a game. He shot 50.3% inside the arc, and only 29.6% outside it. Westbrook’s worst stat from last season was his average of 4.3 turnovers a game, which was the second most in the league. That and Westbrook’s poor 3-point shooting were his only true flaws from last season. Westbrook is entering the prime of his career, playing a majority of this season at 28 years- old, so we should see all of his already incredible stats improve. What makes Westbrook my number one contender for the MVP this season is not his stats from this season, but the 2014-2015 season. He played a majority of this season without Durant, and put up incredible numbers. He averaged 28.1 points, 8.6 assists, 7.3 rebounds, 2.1 steals, and 0.2 blocks per a game, while averaging the 34.4 minutes a game, the same as this previous season. He shot worse from inside the arc that season at 45.7%, and shot 29.9% from beyond the arc. Now that Westbrook is no longer playing alongside the former MVP and a current top 5 player in the world, Kevin Durant, I expect him to put up even greater numbers this season, because the team is now totally his. I predict Westbrook will average about 30 points, 9 assists, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals a game, so almost a triple double. I think his assists will go down, only because he doesn’t have Durant on the floor with him anymore. If Westbrook can put up a statline close to that, and it is very likely he will, it is just about impossible that he doesn’t end this season as the MVP.

I feel very confident the 2016-2017 NBA MVP will be Russell Westbrook, but the other four players have solid shots, especially James Harden. It will be a tight race between the two, but because Westbrook can literally do everything, I see him winning over Harden. Steph Curry and Kevin Durant are also in the picture, but I can’t see one of them being able to put up MVP stats while playing on one of the best teams (on paper) in NBA history. They probably won’t even play 30 minutes a game most nights, because they won’t have to. When the regular season starts, we will see how the race for the MVP begins.