It’s the time of the year when the MLB and NASCAR playoffs are happening, the NFL season is in full swing, the NHL regular season has just begun, and the NBA season is getting ready to make its presence felt. There are but 27 days until the 2007-08 season begins, yet for the moment, all we can do is project. Heck, the Miami Heat began training camp this morning at midnight. I guess that’s better than guys coming to work the next morning with alcohol breath from a final night on “So Be,” huh?

So, in line with others readying themselves, I’m going to begin checking in with NBA news and regular season projections. In the spirit of CBS Sports.com’s Tony Mejia I’m starting the coverage off with the “TSF Top Fiddy NBA Players.” Like Mejia’s top fifty, these Top Fiddy are based on projected performance for the upcoming season.

1. Tim Duncan, San Antonio: Tim is the man because he actively impacts both ends of the court. He’s as clutch as any player ever to play the game, including my number two guy, plus he’s a team leader that everyone who pulls on a Spurs jersey follows.  On a night in and night out basis, Duncan is as proficient on the offensive end of the floor as a shark is  in a feeding frenzy. Defensively he can alternately clog the middle and play  extraordinary man-to-man defense. Though he is not known as a leaper Duncan is a  better than average shot blocker. As a  rebounder, Duncan  positions himself for boards as well as any big man in the NBA. His only flaw is that he can be a bit snarky at times - just ask referee Joe Crawford.  But overall, at least for now, Tim must get the nod as the Lig’s best  player.

2. Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers: In the World Championships, Bryant showed up slimmer but more muscular than ever, which is a bad omen for the rest of the Lig. He also showed that, with proficient players around him Bryant is the best basketball player in the world. The problem is, no Lakers player is as proficient as those he played with this summer. At the same time, if Kobe’s knees are in good enough shape to go hard on both ends of the floor, he could well end up the numero uno baller by season’s end. He’ll have to do a couple of other things, to receive this honor: one, become a better leader off the court, which means keeping critiques of teammates out of shopping mall parking lots and off radio shows and two, do everything in his power to make his teammates better players. I know Bryant can’t make somebody get in the gym and take 100 extra shots every day, or bulk up, or stay out of strip clubs the night before a road game, but he can be a facilitator on the court. This means he must know as well as a point guard where his teammates like to get the ball to get their shots off. Early in the season he needs to show trust in them and allow them to take open shots in key moments so that later when the playoff run is on, Kobe isn’t forced to play one-on-five on a given night.  Should he succeed, his Lakers will make a deep playoff run and Kobe Bean Bryant will win his first Most Valuable Player award.

3. Dwyane Wade, Miami: D-Wade, when healthy, balls hard all the time. He makes his teammates better because he’s unafraid to drive and kick and equally unafraid to let teammates shine if they’re hot. Wade plays both on-ball defense and passing lanes as well as anyone except Kobe (when Bryant is motivated or healthy). He also is adept at sneaking down on the block and playing help-side “D” as well. Wade doesn’t mind rebounding and leading the fast break and will do all the little things, including leading the Heat in floor burns it takes to win. Talented, smart, tough, and gritty, D-Wade is not a Kobe “Lite” because he’s too talented. He’s more like a Kobe “Bock,” darker and damn tasty on a chilly night in the Miami winter.

4. LeBron James, Cleveland: Sure anyone can make the case that Bron Bron should be number three —————– but. James has never been confused with Kobe or Wade as a defender; he takes too many poor shots, and still misses too many free throws in key moments. Additionally, from watching James in the World ‘chips it was apparent that he hadn’t yet worked to correct the flaws in his jumper. He still tends to drift when shooting and his release point is not always from the same spot. But he’s LeBron James, which means he’s more natively talented than any player in the NBA.

5. Kevin Garnett, Boston: Until Flip Saunders moved on to man the bench in Detroit, no one realized how mediocre a coach he is. Meanwhile, pretty much everybody blamed KG for the Timberwolves’ woes. Now, people are also realizing just how bad the Minnesota teams Garnett played on were - and that includes the Western Conference Final squad with Latrell Sprewell and Sam Cassell. Garnett is a double-double monster; he and Duncan are the best. Watch this man play this season with Paul “The Truth” and Ray “Jesus Shuttlesworth” Allen. Garnett might have lesser numbers this season, but be fresher as the season wears on. He might well be the most dangerous player in the Eastern Conference come playoff time - and perhaps in the entire league. If Boston can dig up a proficient veteran point guard to pair with Rajon Rondo, Garnett might just walk away with MVP number two.

6. Yao Ming, Houston: That’s right, I said it, Yao at number six. If he avoids oddball injuries he is the Lig’s dominant center (Duncan is a power forward). He’s become attuned enough to the NBA game to get angry and elevate his game when the opposition attempts to intimidate him with hard fouls. He clogs up the lane unlike player not named Shaquille O’Neal and has become a double-double master. Oh, and he’s learned to effectively pass out of the double-team to the point where it’s to the opposition’s disadvantage to do so. With his touch around the basket and his 12-15-foot range on his jumper, Yao is set up for a  wonderful 2007-08.

7. Jason Kidd, New Jersey: The 21st century triple-double man is so good, so savvy, that age has no effect on the 34-year old point guard. Though his jumper will always be his Achilles heel, no player in the NBA other than Kidd can change the balance of a game without scoring a point. He is the consummate floor leader on the offensive end and plays good enough defense to hold his own every night.

8. Steve Nash, Phoenix: Little Stevie Fingertips is in the perfect system for his skills to shine. He’s ranked beneath Kidd because for Nash to be at his most effective he must put the ball in the basket. However, his vision in the open court is unparalleled, his jumper is clutch and butter at the same time, and he’s a magician with the ball when he drives the lane. No, he can’t play defense, but on the Suns, outside of Raja Bell, who can?

9. Paul Pierce, Boston: The Truth is just that. The man can be damn near unstoppable when he gets in the flow o####ame. He can, at will, post up a defender, or take him off the dribble, or shoot jumpers in his face. When motivated, Pierce is one of the NBA’s better on-ball small forward defenders. This season, with the addition of Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to the Celtics roster, Pierce will be freer than at any point in his career to exploit defenses. The NBA could be Paul’s playground this year. And with Garnett, Boston now has two legitimate MVP candidates.

10. Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas: Dirk added some defense to his game last season and showed that that he can longer be called “Irk.” He led the Mavericks to the Lig’s best regular season record, but wilted in the playoffs. The Dallas unseemly first round exit to the golden State Warriors highlighted Nowitzki’s deficiencies. That deflating loss to the Warriors showed Nowitzki exactly what he needs to add to his game; a low post game. This year, look for the big German to add low block moves to his already lethal offensive arsenal so he can better take advantage of smaller defenders. Regardless of last season’s failures and the shortcomings in his game that were exposed by the smaller, quicker Warriors, expect Nowitzki to have gone back to his German woodshed to enhance his already dangerous game. Nowitzki quietly developed into an adequate rebounder for a player who haunts the perimeter and was an underrated passing lane defender, which is two notches up from the Nowitzki of old.