After what seemed like years since last season, the time has come.

The NBA regular season started this past Tuesday. So naturally, it’s time to predict the post season awards.

Throughout the year some players will go above and beyond. Those players go on to win awards from the Rookie of the Year to the MVP.

The Rookie of the Year award always ends up in ways no one expects. That being said. Dennis Smith JR has a great chance to win it. As the most athletic player in the NBA, Smith has a 48 inch vertical. That person is rookie Dennis Smith Jr. Smith is joining a suffering Mavericks team whose best player is the 39 year old veteran, Dirk Nowitzki. Smith has the great opportunity to take the reigns from Nowitzki and become the young leader this team needs.

It seems like it has been years has passed since the “next Lebron James” was drafted first overall by the 76ers. Ben Simmons has gone an entire year without playing a game of basketball due to a foot injury. He see’s the floor better than nearly any forward in the game, and his athleticism is through the roof. If Simmons is who he has been said to be, expect him to be holding up the Rookie Of The Year trophy.

The Most Improved Player award is always fun to keep up with. After being sent to the Brooklyn Nets and Jeremy Lin injured, D’angelo Russell has the perfect opportunity to showcase himself like he never has gotten the opportunity to before. With his first game with the Nets Russell put up 30 points with a 54 percent field goal completion, five assists, and three rebounds. Last year he averaged 15 points, 4.8 assists, and 3.5 rebounds with the Los Angeles Lakers. So, he averaged double his points per game last year. That is definitely a reason to watch out for Russell winning Most Improved Player.

Having put up big numbers last year, it will be a difficult task for Devin Booker to win Most Improved Player. But those numbers may help more than hurt when going for the award. Booker is now the number one option for the Suns. Sure, they are a sub-par team, but wouldn’t that give Booker more of a green light than if he played for a team like the Heat? He will have the best season of his short career this year and be in the running for the award.

The Sixth Man of the Year always has a large impact on their team. After saying that this is his official comeback season, Derrick Rose started the season off very well. He scored a total of 14 points, two assists, and four rebounds. The thing that hurts Rose is that Isaiah Thomas is out due to his injury.

The next candidate is a Cavalier as well. Smith was noticeably upset after losing his starting position to Dwyane Wade. If Smith decides to prove everyone wrong he could very well win the Sixth Man award.

After the MVP award, the DPOY award is one of the most important. After winning it two previous times, Kawhi Leonard is very well known as a lockdown defender who takes pride in defense. He is already a two time DPOY award winner, and for a very good reason. He averaged 1.8 steals and .7 blocks last season. But that doesn’t tell the whole story. What makes him so sufficient on the defensive side is his perimeter defense.

Rudy Gobert can affect any offense with his 8’0 wingspan. If he doesn’t block the shot, he always contests it. Last year, Gobert averaged 2.6 blocks per game. That is a reason that he should contend for the award because he affects every shot the offense throws up.

The moment everyone has been waiting for, one of the MVP candidates this year will be the one and only Lebron James. James is most likely to win the award this year. James is without a doubt the most valuable player in the league. WIthout him, the Cavaliers would be a low seed playoff team. James is not only able to perform better than anyone in the league, he also brings out the best in all of his teammates. Expect to see James leading the MVP race throughout the year.

The next candidate is Kawhi Leonard.  Leonard is by far the best player on his Spurs team. He is just as good on offense as he is on defense, which is saying something. This is Leonards best chance to win the award that he has ever had. Curry and Durant are going to have to share touches at Golden State, Westbrook will have less touches due to Carmelo Anthony and Paul George join the team. And James Harden will have the ball in his hands less because of the addition of Chris Paul. If Kawhi is going to make a push for the award, this year is his chance.