The NBA released its annual general manager survey on Tuesday, and executives have a very clear favorite when it comes to who will be lifting the Larry O’Brien trophy this summer.
An overwhelming 83% of respondents think that the Boston Celtics will repeat and win the NBA Finals this season. The Celtics beat the Dallas Mavericks 4-1 in the Finals earlier this year, which marked the franchise’s 18th championship in history. The Oklahoma City Thunder earned 13% of the vote in the survey, and the Mavericks earned 3%. By comparison, the Celtics and the Denver Nuggets split the vote last season at 33% each to lead the survey.
Naturally, the Celtics are the favorite to win the Eastern Conference, too. They earned 97% of the votes there, compared to just 53% last season. The New York Knicks finished in second in the voting, slightly ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers. In the West, the Oklahoma City Thunder were voted to finish first. The Minnesota Timberwolves, Denver Nuggets and Mavericks were close behind in that order.
The Celtics will officially open their regular season against the Knicks on Oct. 22. The league hasn’t seen a repeat champion since the Golden State Warriors won back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018.
Luka Dončić dominates individual voting
Though he wasn’t the pick to win the MVP award this season, Mavericks star Luka Dončić dominated the individual voting categories in the survey.
Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the pick to earn MVP honors this season with 40% of the voting. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 30.1 points, 6.2 assists and 5.5 rebounds per game last season while finishing in second in the MVP race behind Nikola Jokić.
Dončić finished in second with 30% of the vote, and was the only other player to earn double-digit support. Joel Embiid, Jokić and Jayson Tatum finished in a tie for third at 7%.
Dončić then earned votes in the best point guard, best shooting guard and best small forward categories. He was selected as the top point guard in the league with 37% of the vote, fifth in the shooting guard race and in a tie for second in the small forward voting. Anthony Edwards was selected as the best shooting guard at 33%, and Tatum was the best small forward at 47%.
Dončić averaged a career-high 33.9 points per game last season, which was the best output in the league, while leading the Mavericks to the NBA Finals for the first time since the Dirk Nowitski era. He fell just shy of averaging a triple-double, too, with 9.8 assists and 9.2 rebounds per game.
Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo was voted the league’s best power forward with 77% of the vote, and Jokić earned 87% of the vote in the best center race.
Offseason moves, other awards
As for the offseason, general managers thought that the Thunder made the best moves this past summer, slightly ahead of the 76ers. Philadelphia landed Paul George this past offseason, too, who was overwhelmingly selected as the player acquisition that will make the biggest impact this season.
The trade that sent Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks was voted as the biggest surprise move of the offseason. The Memphis Grizzlies earned 67% of the vote in the most improved team category, too. The Grizzlies, who spent most of the year without star Ja Morant, went just 27-55 last season.
Houston Rockets guard Reed Sheppard was voted most likely to win Rookie of the Year honors and to be the best player in five years among current rookies. Sheppard, who the Rockets took with the No. 3 overall pick, averaged 12.5 points and 4.5 assists per game last season at Kentucky.
Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra was once again voted the best head coach in the league in numerous categories. New Phoenix Suns head coach Mike Buenholzer was voted first among new or relocated head coaches in the league.
The NBA season will officially open on Oct. 22 with a doubleheader featuring matchups between the Knicks and Celtics and the Lakers and Timberwolves.