COLUMN: Basketball season preview: Heat and Wiggins headline exciting year

With a 20-foot jumpshot over San Antonio Spur Kawhi Leonard to finish Game 7 of The Finals, LeBron James capped the 2012-13 NBA basketball season the way it was supposed to be.

James was supposed to win another championship and Finals MVP. He was supposed to solidify himself as the “greatest player ever”. Fans were supposed to bow down to this once-in-a-lifetime player. And the basketball Gods were supposed to make sure a third championship ring is in sight for “The King.”

Basketball is supposed to be in a state of nirvana. But it is not.

I’m not suggesting the LeBron-led Miami Heat are not the title favorite in the NBA. They definitely are.

No, what I am getting at is the 2013-14 basketball calendar year is starting to feel like the most hyped year of basketball in my lifetime.

In college basketball, the game is recovering from down competition. The next NBA draft class is being labeled as the best since 2003 (LeBron’s class). New contenders in the NBA are popping up coast-to-coast to contend with the Heat.

Here are my thoughts on basketball’s two biggest story lines heading into the season.

Who stops the Heat?

It’s easily the biggest question leading into this week’s NBA opener. If you don’t think the Heat are the favorites, I want to hear why. I do believe they are vulnerable, but there is no single team ready or proven enough right now to take the title.

The reason I believe the Heat are vulnerable revolves around three things: a questionable Dwyane Wade, continued injury problems and plenty of new contenders.

We are not in 2006, 2008, or even 2012 anymore. Dwayne Wade can no longer dice his way through defenses night in and night out. He still shows flashes of his prime and was more timely than good in the 2013 playoffs. But the three-headed monster of LeBron, Wade and Chris Bosh is becoming LeBron and Co. faster than tamagochi pets die.

So, who is best suited to take down the two-time reigning champs?

We saw a glimpse of the Indiana Pacer’s potential last playoffs, where the Pacers took the Heat to seven games behind emerging superstar Paul George. The Pacers dominated the undersized Heat in the paint all series with postmen Roy Hibbert and David West. With the eye test, the Pacers certainly match-up well with Miami. And expect them to make a solid run out West for a Finals visit, especially with former all-star Danny Granger back healthy (knock on wood) for this season.

Undoubtedly, the East should be dominated by the Heat and Pacers, but a number of other teams have reloaded or added pieces. The Chicago Bulls will have Derrick Rose, which is kind of a big deal; the Brooklyn Nets added Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce and even the Cleveland Cavaliers and Detroit Pistons look to be improving.

It will take LeBron’s greatest postseason to emerge from the Eastern Conference.

Out West things are a little bit trickier, and I think the only thing to expect from out there is chaos.

There’s the Oklahoma Thunder, led by the second best player in the league Kevin Durant, poised as the favorites.

The Houston Rockets have infinite swagger on their side with James Harden, Dwight Howard and Jeremy Lin.

Golden State could be the next great team out West with shooters and scorers like Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala.

Pesky, old and efficient, the San Antonio Spurs will not go away. And Tim Duncan might see this as one of the few chances he still has for a ring.

Then there are teams who are looking to breakthrough into the playoffs and maybe shock a few people. The Portland Trail Blazers have young weapons everywhere, and the New Orleans Pelicans acquired a number of pieces this offseason. Honestly, the thing holding the Pelicans down the most is their unique name: boring jersey ratio. Poor management can bite.

Minor prediction: I like Golden State to push through to the conference finals, but they’ll face either a hot Spurs team or a ready Thunder group. Expect either the gritty Spurs or the Thunder in the Finals.

Major prediction: I feel like I am selling out with the Heat, but I think they’re the safest bet right now. I think LeBron elevates his game this season to astronomical levels, and for the sake of greatness, I hope fans everywhere expect the same thing. I’ll take the Heat in the Finals in six games over anyone from the tossed-salad Western Conference. But I would not be surprised if the King and Company are dethroned at any time.

Honestly, I’ll just be cheering for the most exciting season ever. And for the Lakers to be a top 20 team.

Is Andrew Wiggins the next big thing?

It’s hard to imagine anyone living up the hype placed on Kansas’ number one recruit Andrew Wiggins. I don’t think any basketball fans should be surprised if he slips at any point this season

With scoring-minded Wayne Seldon and extra-large-human-being Joel Embiid, Wiggins won’t be the only freshman looking to run one of Bill Self’s youngest teams. My prediction is that Wiggins slips at some point during the season. Hopefully it’s early so March Madness has the extra Wiggins luster and his draft stock doesn’t fall.

I don’t actually believe Wiggins’ draft stock can possibly fall outside the top five. He can ride the YouTube hype to a high lottery pick at least. But I’m guessing there will be constant Wiggins/ Jabari Parker/Julius Randle number one pick debates starting next April.

When looking past Andrew Wiggins, talk begins with Jabari Parker, the Duke recruit who led Simeon Prep to four Illinois high school state championships. Parker was the first player in the class of 2013 to be labeled as the next Lebron, but Wiggins’ emergence has made Parker one of the most under-appreciated college basketball recruits of recent memory.

Mentioned earlier, the next major contender for an NBA number one pick is Kentucky’s Julius Randle. The beast of a man Randle will emerge as the scariest presence around the country.

Six foot, nine inches and 250 pounds with a cold-blooded killer mentality, Randle will thrive in one of the greatest recruiting classes in college basketball history. He will have Andrew Harrison – a potential lottery pick point guard – setting him up and John Calipari making sure he develops into this team’s DeMarcus Cousins or Anthony Davis.

I don’t have enough space to go in-depth other freshmen like Arizona’s Aaron Gordon, both of Kentucky’s Harrison twins (yes, there are two) and Kansas’ Embiid.

What I will leave you with is something to look forward to. Aaron “The Next Blake Griffin” Gordon will be a staple SportsCenter Top 10 presence, and he’ll have the chance to run a team in Arizona. Mark him down as my freshman Naismith Player of the Year favorite.