Preseason Primer

Player to Watch: Carmelo Anthony. In battling Kobe Bryant in the Western Conference finals, 'Melo showed that he's ready to take the next step. Look for Anthony to use the Lakers series as fuel for what could be his best season.

Camp Battles: Who starts at shooting guard during J.R. Smith's seven-game suspension to start the season? Arron Afflalo is the favorite, but the Nuggets have shown interest in free agent Ime Udoka, who can play around the basket or on the wing.

Less is More: The Nuggets were quiet in free agency, letting Dahntay Jones go to Indiana and instead focusing on re-signing Chris "Birdman" Andersen. In an environment where every team is cutting corners, few of them do more with less than the Nuggets. Executive of the Year Mark Warkentien may have two more low-priced finds in Affalo and D-League dunk champ James "Flight" White.

-- By Ken Berger, CBSSports.com Senior Writer

Player to Watch: Al Jefferson will be back in the mix for All-Star consideration after missing the second half of last season with a torn ACL. He was on his way to joining Dwight Howard and Chris Bosh as the only players in the league to average at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Camp Battles: It's a group battle for the starting and backup two and three spots, including Sasha Pavlovic, Ryan Gomes, Corey Brewer, Wayne Ellington and Damien Wilkins.

Rubio Factor: With Ricky Rubio staying in Spain, this is rookie Jonny Flynn's team. For how long depends on Rubio and whether free-agent acquisition Ramon Sessions is better suited to point guard or two-guard.

-- By Ken Berger, CBSSports.com Senior Writer

Player to Watch: Shaun Livingston. How can you not root for this guy to make it back from a devastating knee injury? He'll never be the same, but hanging on as a quality backup to Russell Westbrook would be a triumph.

Camp Battles: Nenad Krstic, Etan Thomas and rookie B.J. Mullens are in the mix at center, and there's an opportunity for the most productive player to emerge with the most minutes. The backup point guard battle between Livingston and Kevin Ollie is worth watching, too.

Breakout Tear: While the Thunder continue to assemble the building blocks of a future Western Conference power, Kevin Durant is the clear centerpiece. This is likely to be his first of many All-Star seasons.

-- By Ken Berger, CBSSports.com Senior Writer

Player to Watch: The Blazers believe they've found the elite point guard they've been searching for in Andre Miller, who will be an upgrade over Steve Blake.

Camp Battles: The small forward spot is up for grabs among Nicolas Batum, Travis Outlaw and Martell Webster.

Title Time: The Blazers look deep, athletic and awfully dangerous in a playoff series. How far they go depends on health and the continued improvement of Greg Oden. With Shaq out of the West, it would be a positive sign if Oden embraced the idea of filling that vacuum and becoming the best true center in the conference.

-- By Ken Berger, CBSSports.com Senior Writer

Player to Watch: Carlos Boozer stated unequivocally last December that he'd opt out of his contract after the season. When the economy turned, he changed his mind. Now, he's in limbo. It's a matter of when, not if, Boozer will be traded.

Camp Battles: C.J. Miles started all 72 games he played last season at small forward, but started none of the five playoff games against the Lakers; those were split between Kyle Korver and Andrei Kirilenko. Ronnie Price and first-round pick Eric Maynor will compete for backup minutes behind point guard Deron Williams.

Broken Down: Tough guy Matt Harpring will miss all of preseason and at least part of the regular season with debilitating ankle and knee injuries. All the pounding may finally have taken its toll, and the Jazz will miss his tenacity off the bench.

-- By Ken Berger, CBSSports.com Senior Writer