The last two NBA seasons we’ve seen Steph Curry emerge as numero uno in the game. Now, LeBron James may have a thing (/ring) or two to say about that but back to back MVPs don’t lie. Especially not the first ever unanimous ballot. But Steph Curry might not be dropping another MVP award off at the jewellers this season, not with the addition of Kevin Durant adding to an already stacked Golden State Warriors roster that you’d have to assume are all taking votes off each other.

Like, already this season we’ve seen Kevin Durant do magical things and then Curry himself followed one of his worst games in ages (0/10 from 3pt vs LAL) with one of his best, sinking a ridiculous 13 three pointers for a new NBA record (guts to J.R. Smith, amongst others). Draymond Green isn’t likely to go competing for MVPs but he is likely to hog a certain amount of points, boards and assists while Klay Thompson is yet to do anything much and we know how damned good he can be. There isn’t going to be a sustained main guy for the Dubs, which is partly why they’re so terrifying and also partly why that MVP award could be up for grabs again in 2016-17.

And let’s not forget that Bill Russell, Larry Bird and Wilt Chamberlain remain the only dudes to ever win three Most Valuable Player trophies in a row.

Plus this offseason was a brutal one for the past heroes, what with Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant all retiring – each one of them past winners. That leaves Dirk Nowitzki, LeBron James, Derrick Rose, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry as the only former recipients of the trophy. Saint Dirk is getting pretty old these days, while Durant and Curry are on the same team now – the past two individual winners together and in their primes. Derrick Rose is looking better for the Knicks but you’re crazy if you think he’ll be anywhere near this conversation and that only leaves LeBron… who is best not counted out, not even at 3-1 down in the Finals.

All of which is leading towards a bold statement: There will be a new MVP winner this season.

Well, maybe. I still happen to think that LeBron James is, if not the outright favourite then definitely in the top one. But if he eases on the gas pedal over the season, making sure to prioritise the playoffs as he’s been known to do then who does that leave? Discounting Warriors, we’re in for some fresh blood which is bloody exciting given we’ve only seen four different names the last eight years. Here are the candidates…

Russell Westbrook

Ah yes, as if there were any other place we could start. Russ was forsaken by Kevin Durant in the offseason however as a result he’s been pushed not only into an undisputed top dog status at the Oklahoma City Thunder but also in the eyes of NBA fans and media out there. Don’t sleep on that factor. Two years ago James Harden was seen as more of a pragmatic, clinical player with his way of getting to the free throw line over and over while Steph Curry was a flashy three point bomber and you could argue that made the difference. People preferred Curry. People now love a bit of Russ.

Unleashed to control games like never before, Westbrook is gonna have a crazy usage rate and a crazy volume of numbers. Triple doubles in two of his first three games, including a 51 pointer against Phoenix, suggest that he’s living up to the bill. Through the first couple weeks of the season that usage reads an eye-popping 41%. There isn’t a more driven player out there, which makes Westbrook a fireball of energy and an incredible player to watch. His major drawback is that he’s not at all efficient, with a high turnover rate and a pretty average field goal percentage. Early signs suggest his three point shot is looking better though. For him it mostly depends on how far he can take this team on his back coz if they win 55 games then he’s got a serious chance. If they win 45 then he’ll slip all the way back in the queue.

Anthony Davis

People forget just how good Anthony Davis is sometimes and it’s not his fault or even theirs. That’s what happens when injuries get you down. It’s also what happens when you don’t play for a playoff team – hold that thought a sec.

Davis is an undeniable superstar. For years now we’ve been reading that he’s destined to join the so-called elite tier of players… screw that. He’s already there. Davis is 6’10 with a huge wingspan that allows him to rebound and shot block but he’s also got ball-handling to rival most point guards. The dude is a threat to do absolutely everything and he started his season with a game against Denver where he scored 50 points, had 16 rebounds, 5 assists, 7 steals and 4 blocks. Insane.

What really holds AD back is that his team is utter pants. The last player to win the MVP on a team with fewer than 50 wins was Moses Malone with the Rockets back in 1981-82 and even then they still won 46 and made the playoffs. These Pelicans… I mean, they’ll be a lot better when they get Jrue Holiday and Tyreke Evans back (assuming he does get healthy this season at all, and healthy enough to do what he does) but starting winless through the first couple weeks hardly suggests a playoff run. That Denver game? They still lost. The Brow might be a freak but things had better turn around if this is gonna be his season.

Kawhi Leonard

If there’s a fresh winner then this bloke is your top bet. Kawhi was already the leader of the Spurs but now that Tim Duncan has retired, with Tony Parker another year older and with LaMarcus Aldridge’s place in the team a little up in the air, he’s taken on an even greater responsibility. This is a man who’s already won a Finals MVP before, so there’s some pedigree.

With Leonard, his scoring is gonna see a career high, probably somewhere around 24-25 points per game and his assists are trending upwards too. There are a few others that can keep pace with that and more so… yet nobody alive is touching him when it comes to Kawhi’s main strength. He is pure and simply the best on-ball defender in the game. He’s got huge hands and he’s got quick hands – he picked 10 steals in the first two games of the season. Dribble at this guy at your own peril.

Plus he plays for the Spurs, which is both a positive and a negative. Positive because they’re gonna win lots of games and look great, which further spotlights their standout contributor. Negative because there’s very little chance his 33% usage rate doesn’t dip. It already has in fact, which is the problem with projecting this early in the season. Given some of the other fellas on this list, a Kawhi MVP award would be a real victory for two-way players. Keep an eye on the campaigning – everyone already knows he’s the best defensive player out there (or at least in the top two, but Draymond’s reputation seems to be sliding a little – expect some voter fatigue there) however if the tales of his increasingly supreme offensive game start to come out (the levels of improvement in that jump shot since he entered the league is astounding) then you’ll know the Spurs are out there for their boy.

Chris Paul

Generally you don’t see players winning MVP awards into their 30s, at least not those who haven’t won before. Karl Malone won at age 33 in 1996-97 and again at 35 in 1998-99 yet since then only Steve Nash has won it in 30s. Chris Paul turns 32 in May.

It doesn’t look like Blake Griffin will be challenging for the top prize, contract year or not. Chris Paul on the other hand very well could. He’s always popping up on a few ballots and don’t forget that with a player option for next season, this could be a contract year for him too. For the entire Clippers. Chances are if this season goes badly then the Doc/Blake/CP/DeAndre core will be broken up his time so there's lots on the line. And Paul runs the show, no doubt about that. The last three seasons he averaged around 19p/10a. Say that he can breach the 20 point mark and get the Clippers to a two-seed in the West then he’ll be all the way up there. Again, he’s often been in the picture so a boost in performance will definitely catch eyes.

A killer mid-ranger, magnificent passing ability and lockdown defence. Even if he’s not the most dynamic compared to certain other point guards in this race, Chris Paul gets things done. There is a feeling that you need to bring some more fireworks to win this thing though.

Damian Lillard

Fireworks are one thing that this lad brings in spades. The career trajectory fits as well, having gone from a vibrant scorer at PG but one whose defence and enthusiasm maybe let him down to last season emerging as a beloved spearhead after the Trail Blazers lost the likes of LaMarcus Aldridge, Nic Batum and Wes Matthews all at once. Despite that culling of their starting five, Dame went and dragged them back into the playoffs with 44 wins, averaging 25 points and 6.8 assists. If you ignore an 18-7 run in January and February they were actually well under .500, though they blew plenty of that criticism out by beating the Clippers in the playoffs (granted not a healthy Clips side).

Lillard is a huge personality that guys want to play with. He’s also fully cold-blooded when it comes to those late shots, none more famous than his winner to clinch the series against Houston a couple years ago. So far this season we’ve seen a zoned-in Lillard popping points for fun – he had a third quarter against Dallas where he sunk all four of his three-point attempts including two from what can only be considered Steph Curry range. He’s a rare player that can completely take over a contest and while there’s no way he keeps dropping 35+ like he did three times in his first six games, it’s also not impossible.

That’s how good Dame can be on his day. Just a matter of having enough of them to where he can haul the Blazers to the next level. But yeah, it’s extremely tough to win the MVP without being on a top couple seeded team. Then again, Lillard wasn’t chased by the major colleges. He was drafted after the likes of Bradley Beal, Dion Waiters and Thomas Robinson. He knows how to thrive against expectations.

James Harden

The Bearded One should have won it two seasons ago, if you go by some folks out there. Folks like his fellow players who voted him as the player’s player of the season. Nice work, player. And they were fair enough to do so too, Harden is a basketball machine and just because you know the formula – three pointers, layups and free throws, so many free throws – that doesn’t make it any easier to do… or to stop.

Last season was not a good one for the Rockets as they barely scraped into the playoffs with an even record after winning 56 games the previous season. This time Mike D’Antoni is in as head coach and he’s waving the wand of offensive mastery already. Harden is seeing time primarily as a point guard and while the early surge in points can be attributed to a small sample size, there’s also a huge increase in assists which cannot be denied. In a game against Cleveland he scored 41 points on 20 shots.

Harden’s not got the best supporting cast, so his chances are a lot like his old teammate Russell Westbrook. If their teams do well, they will be in the conversation. If not then not at all. This could be Harden’s turn though after having to serve as a bridesmaid ‘til now.

Paul George

This would certainly be a popular one, with George's story pretty inseparable from that horrific broken leg back in 2014 that he sustained with the USA team. Incredibly PG was back better than ever last season, playing a fair bit more as a PF and logging a career high 23 points per game. 7 boards too. Problem is the Pacers are something of a mess at the moment and George himself has called them ‘lifeless’ and ‘out of whack’. Also he got fined for kicking a ball into the stands. The signs aren’t the best, even if he did later send flowers to the woman who was stuck by the ball.

Given the dramatic shift in this team with Frank Vogel sacked and replaced by Nate McMillan as coach and Jeff Teague and Al Jefferson in on the roster, perhaps this is the wrong time for Georgie. This isn’t like clearing the path for Westbrook to dominate in OKC, this whole situation doesn’t exactly lend itself to a run at the MVP. But Paul George is a badass and there’s a long way to go so he deserves to be on the list.

On that topic, let’s also chuck in ceremonial nods towards the likes of DeMar DeRozan, Kemba Walker, Harrison Barnes, John Wall, Paul Millsap, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kyrie Irving, Marc Gasol and possibly even Jerome Randle at this rate (!). Plus a few others. None of them have any chance of winning this thing but all are playing great ball.

LeBron James

Then to finish, we return to the well. Six consecutive NBA finals appearances, 12 All-Star nods, three championships… and four MVPs. LeBron is firmly established as one of the game’s greats and if you follow some of the things he’s been saying then you know he wants to get rid of that ‘one of’ part of the equation. He’s chasing GOAT status. Another MVP would add something firm to that argument as only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (6 MVPs), Bill Russell (5) and Michael Jordan (5) can compete with that.

Given his proclivities for prioritising the playoffs, he’s been overlooked some in 2016-17 at least as far as this trophy goes. We’ve learned more times than we should need to that when LeBron puts his mind to something he tends to go a long way towards achieving it and with the pressure of hanging banners in Cleveland finally off his shoulders he might wanna take another swing at the Most Valuable tag. He’s only a couple months older than Chris Paul so if his health holds – which goes for everyone here – then there’s no reason he can’t. Already we’ve seen games like his opener against the Knicks, where Bron simply dominates while still looking like he has a gear or two to go. If you think he isn’t still among the very best in the game, and that doesn’t mean top ten but top two or three if not number one, then mate… wake up.