The National Basketball League season is more than two months away, and squads are yet to be finalised, but that is not going to stop us from looking at what we have and making some bold predictions.
Last season we saw one of the most even competitions in professional sport across the globe unfold. Seven of the eight teams had a chance of making finals in the final round, meaning it was a nightmare for anyone trying to publish a finals preview as quickly as possible (Ed's note: That'd be us).
If you've completely wiped last season's results from the memory bank, here's a refresher:
• Champs: Perth Wildcats (defeated Illawarra Hawks 3-0)
• MVP: Jerome Randle
• MIP: Nathan Sobey
• Coach of the Year: Joey Wright
Effectively it was domination from the Adelaide 36ers at the awards night, and deservedly so, after their season caught seemingly everyone by surprise. Unfortunately, for Adelaide, that regular season success didn't translate into the finals; will that change this season?
Perth are aiming for the ever illusive three-peat, and we believe at this juncture that they should come back as the team to beat. Melbourne United under Dean Vickerman will be looking to get back into the finals, while Sydney Kings will be hoping to do better than they did in Andrew Gaze's first season.
So just who will be the big winners of the coming season, and who should you be keeping your eyes on when the action finally gets underway?
(Quick note: Full teams are yet to be announced; we'll update our predictions when they are).
Best Offseason Signing
Not an official award, this, so the only rule is that the player has to have played in the NBL last season and moved to a new team this season. Travis Trice is the standout player here, at this point, but he may be in line for an award further down the page so we're omitting him on this one. Instead we're looking at a player whose floor spacing and knock-down shooting abilities will work perfectly within his new system.
Todd Blanchfield has made the move from Melbourne United, for whom he averaged under nine points per game last season, to the Sydney Kings. With a healthy Kevin Lisch and Jason Cadee in the backcourt, Blanchfield at the three will be instrumental in the Kings surging up the standings this season.
Most Improved Player
There is plenty of love for the marquee players such as Chris Goulding, Bryce Cotton and Lisch, but you'll be hard pressed to find a more loved player that Melbourne United's resident Ant Man, Kyle Adnam.
Adnam, 23, averaged single figure minutes per game last season but he should see that number rise this time around; he's in for a big season if his past performances are anything to go off.
Random Record Breaker
The ultimate shooters goal is to register a 50/40/90 come the end of the season. But what do those numbers mean I hear you say? The first one, is the combined percentage of shooting inside and outside the three point line; the second number is from beyond the three-point line; and the final number is free throws.
Daniel Kickert achieved the feat last season -- doing so quite comfortably, too -- and he'll most likely go close to making it again; still, we're picking Kings flame thrower Jason Cadee to etch his name in the record books alongside Kickert.
MVP
With a healthy Lisch back on the floor, Cotton returning to Perth and Goulding leading the way in Melbourne, the MVP race is going to be one of the must-watch aspects of the coming season.
However, fresh off of an NBA Summer League stint with the Milwaukee Bucks, Travis Trice will be looking to help Brisbane Bullets climb off the bottom of the NBL standings and into finals contention. With a loaded backcourt, Trice will be the focal point of the offence and should reap the rewards. Watch Trice's numbers skyrocket as he takes the league by storm and shows why he deserves to be considered for a spot in the NBA.
Champions
Winning one title can be hard enough, going for your third in a row is a near-on impossible task. Perth will look to emulate the feats of the New Zealand Breakers (2011-13) as they prepare for the upcoming 2017-18 NBL season, and they deserve to be considered the team to beat; they should extend their ridiculous finals run, but they're not the team that will be left atop the mountain when all is said and done.
No, the team that will hoist the trophy aloft this season will be none other than Adelaide 36ers.
The 36ers will be dangerous as ever, despite being without their dynamic leader in Jerome Randle, and Mitch Creek and Nathan Sobey will be keen to show they belong back in the NBA having tasted those waters.
Nobody should be caught off guard this time around when the 36ers tear through the league, and we believe they'll claim their first title since 2002 - their fifth title overall.