NBA Training Camps 2016: Start Dates, Schedules and Top Storylines to Watch

With summer officially over and October drawing near, the start of the 2016-17 NBA season is just around the corner.

The Cleveland Cavaliers will look to begin their title defense with a strong training camp, while the new-look Golden State Warriors and 28 other NBA teams start their seasons with the goal of dethroning the champions.

The Houston Rockets, New Orleans Pelicans and Oklahoma City Thunder will report to camp earlier as they prepare to play preseason games as part of the NBA Global Games. All players can report to their teams one day before training camp officially begins for media day, physicals and such. Then the teams finally hit the court.

With that in mind, here is a look at the NBA training-camp schedule and some storylines for preseason practice. For a full list of key dates this upcoming season, check out NBA.com.

       Kevin Durant Begins New Stage in Golden State

While LeBron James returning home and finally bringing a championship to Cleveland was one of the sports stories of the year, Kevin Durant spurning the Thunder to sign with the Warriors made the biggest impact on this upcoming season.

After Oklahoma City relinquished a 3-1 series lead to Golden State in the Western Conference Finals, Durant decided to join the Warriors in free agency. This adds some incredible firepower to a team that won an NBA-record 73 games last season.

The Warriors led the league in scoring last season, and Stephen Curry won the scoring title. Durant has averaged more than 27 points per game in six of the last seven seasons, and Golden State looks to have a sensational shooting offense, per Yahoo Sports’ Michael Gallagher:

Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson had a combined 63.6 true shooting percentage last year. Not. Fair.

— Michael Gallagher (@MikeSGallagher) September 17, 2016

However, how will Durant mesh with Curry, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson? All four require ample touches, and there is only one ball to go around. Curry addressed this situation in an interview with USA Today’s Sam Amick, saying he believes the team can put egos to the side and play winning basketball:

I think I have a healthy ego, meaning that when I’m on the court I feel like I’m the best player out there, that I can do anything I want to do, and that I want to be driven to be the best that I can be. But it’s not like a ‘Look at me, look at me,’ kind of thing. And I think that’s the same with Klay, the same with Draymond, the same with Andre and KD, which is why it …

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