Oklahoma City Thunder, favorites to repeat as NBA champions
The annual NBA.com survey, conducted among the offices of the league’s 30 teams, has identified the Oklahoma City Thunder as the team to beat for next season.
As in previous surveys, the Thunder are the clear favorites to win the title. An impressive 80% of NBA general managers are betting on Oklahoma City to achieve a back-to-back championship, something that hasn’t happened 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 survey, which is sent to the 30 teams and prohibits teams from voting for themselves or players on their own rosters, also predicts Oklahoma City and Cleveland as the top favorites to win their respective conferences. The Thunder led with 87% of the votes, and the remaining 10% went to the Nuggets.
Following the Thunder in the Western Conference were 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 received 30%, 53%, and 13%, respectively.
The Orlando Magic were the only other team to receive votes for first place, with 7%. The Magic were also chosen to finish third overall, followed by the Atlanta Hawks, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, and Boston Celtics.
Nikola Jokic of the Nuggets was the clear favorite to win the Most Valuable Player award, with 67% of the votes. Victor Wembanyama of the Spurs was chosen by general managers as the player they would choose to start a franchise, winning this category for the second consecutive season with 83% of the votes.
Amen Thompson of the Rockets received 30% of the votes in the “most potential for a breakout season” category.
Regarding the best players by position, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Jokic were chosen. The only position with less than 70% of the votes was the forward position, where Doncic obtained 40%.
In the offseason superlative section, the Hawks (53%) were the best choice, followed by the Rockets (27%) and the Nuggets (10%).
Kevin Durant’s transfer to the Rockets was considered the most impactful offseason move. The Magic was chosen as the most improved team and the one that made the most underrated move by acquiring Desmond Bane. The Thunder (83%) were selected as the league’s best defensive team.
Cooper Flagg, Mavericks rookie, was the big favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award and be the best rookie of this class in five years, while Kasparas Jakucionis, of the Miami Heat, was chosen as the biggest draft bargain of this year.
In the individual superlatives section, Wembanyama (80%) was chosen as the best defensive player in the league; Erik Spoelstra (52%) was chosen as the best coach for the sixth consecutive season; Jokic (80%) was chosen as the best passer and player with the greatest court intelligence, 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, as the player you want to take the shot with the game on the line.
