Thunder, Favorites to Repeat the NBA Title
The annual NBA.com survey, conducted among the offices of the league’s 30 teams, points to the Oklahoma City Thunder as the main candidates to defend their title.
As in a previous poll, the Thunder are seen as the heavy favorites to win the championship for the second year in a row. 80% of NBA general managers chose OKC to achieve this feat, which, if realized, would mark the first time since the Golden State Warriors did it in 2018.
The Cleveland Cavaliers and the Denver Nuggets also received some votes, while the Houston Rockets and the New York Knicks each got a selection.
The annual survey, which is sent to all 30 teams and does not allow teams to vote for themselves or players from their own teams, also predicts Oklahoma City and Cleveland as the favorites to win their respective conferences. In addition to the Thunder, who were the first choice in 87% of the ballots and second in the remaining 10%, the Nuggets received 10% of the votes for first place and the Rockets received one.
They are followed, in order, by the Minnesota Timberwolves, Warriors, LA Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs.
In the Eastern Conference, Cleveland and New York were unanimously selected to finish in the top three. The Cavaliers obtained 63% of the votes for first place, 27% for second, and 7% for third. The Knicks, for their part, received 30%, 53%, and 13%, respectively.
The only other team that received votes for first place was the Orlando Magic, with 7%. The Magic was also chosen to finish third overall, followed by the Atlanta Hawks, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Boston Celtics.
Nikola Jokic, Nuggets star, who has been in the top two in the last five MVP votes, was the undisputed choice to win this year’s top individual award, with 67% of the votes. Victor Wembanyama of the Spurs received 83% of the votes as the player general managers would choose to start a franchise, making him the winner in that category for the second consecutive season.
Amen Thompson of the Rockets received 30% of the votes in the “most likely to have a breakout season” category, which aligns with his position as the current betting favorite to be this season’s Most Improved Player.
There was little debate about who is the best player at each position, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Jokic claiming the honor at each position. The only one of the five positions that received less than 70% of the votes for the top selection was the forward position, where Doncic received 40%, followed by Jayson Tatum (20), Kevin Durant (17), LeBron James and Kawhi Leonard (7 each), with Jaylen Brown, Jimmy Butler, and Jalen Williams receiving one vote each.
In the offseason superlatives section, the Hawks (53%) were the best choice for having the best offseason, followed by the Rockets (27%) and the Nuggets (10%).
The transfer of Kevin Durant to the Rockets was chosen as the offseason move that will have the biggest impact, while the Magic was chosen as the most improved team this season (47%) and for having made the most underrated move by trading for guard Desmond Bane. The Thunder (83%) were chosen as the best defensive team in the league.
Cooper Flagg, Mavericks rookie, the number 1 pick in the NBA draft in June, was the big favorite to win both Rookie of the Year and the best rookie of this class in five years, while Kasparas Jakucionis, Miami Heat guard, was chosen as the biggest bargain in this year’s draft.
In the individual superlatives section, Wembanyama (80%) was chosen as the best defensive player in the league; Erik Spoelstra (52%) was chosen as its best coach for the sixth consecutive season; Jokic (80%) was chosen as the best passer and player with the highest basketball IQ in the NBA, while Antetokounmpo and Wembanyama tied, with 30% of the votes each, for the honor of being the most versatile player in the league, and Stephen Curry was the winner, with 47% of the votes, for being the player you would want to take a shot with the game on the line.
