NBA GM Survey 2023-24: DAK's Version
Hello World,
I think just about any and every basketball fan has taken a look at the 2023-24 NBA GM Survey and given their opinion. Now, that the start of the NBA season is approaching, I decided why not join the bandwagon and tell you guys what I generally think about it and answer some questions, because why not!
If you would like to view the full survey it will be linked here.
Generally speaking, it feels like a lot of these GMs didn’t take this too seriously because there is no way that not a single GM believed Bam Adebayo was considered a top defender in the league. But at the end of the day this is anonymous meaning that this is a task that could’ve been delegated and may not reflect what the GMs actually think.
I will be splitting this up into the same sections the survey did.
Predictions
NBA Champion
Starting off with predications and the GMs had the Celtics and Nuggets tied at 33%. I find this to be way too high for the Celtics and for some reason they keep getting mentioned as if they haven’t continually underperformed year after year. On the other hand, I love the fact that the Nuggets are getting their respect as defending NBA champions.
Looking further into conference standings, I find it extremely disrespectful to have the defending Eastern Conference Champions Miami Heat ranked 6th, and having difunctional/unproven teams like the 76ers and Cavaliers ahead of them. On the other side they have both teams which appeared in the Western Conference Finals in the Top 3. Just weird how every year the Heat continue to be underestimated and then later those same GMs are sitting at home while the Heat continue to play basketball well into May.
NBA MVP
The GMs gave 43% of the vote to Nikola Jokic and there is really no one else you can predict at this point in time. It is his award to lose. I believe another guy who could burst onto the scene is Luka Doncic, who received 10% of the vote, but his team’s success may hold him back.
Breakout Player
The GMs gave this one to Anthony Edwards with 23% of the vote, but many others received votes. I understand Edwards had a very impressive showcase in the World Cup, but I question is he really breaking out or was put on a bigger stage to showcase what he already does. Last season he average 24.6 PTS & 5.8 REBS, which are already very impressive numbers. If I were to pick a guy to actually entirely breakout, I would favor Paolo Banchero, as I feel he will impact more winning basketball this year and showcase why he was the number 1 overall pick.
Offseason Moves
This section is just so sad for me as the Miami Heat just sat idly by once again, but without further ado we will review it. The one question which really interested me was, ‘Which team made the best overall moves this offseason?’ and the Bucks and Celtics were tied for this one. Although, both teams made amazing moves, I don’t understand how on paper the Bucks aren’t the clear winners because they acquired a top-10 player, whereas the Celtics acquired one all-defensive guy, Jrue Holiday, and an injury prone Kristaps Porzingis. Anyway, shout out to my UM guy Bruce Brown getting love with 7% of the vote going to his signing with the Pacers being considered the most surprising move of the offseason.
Rookies & Internationals
This section for rookies was absolutely dominated by Victor Wembanyama and rightfully so. He is almost guaranteed to be the Rookie of the Year and based on his preseason games, he will be the best player out of this draft class in five-years.
Nikola Jokic also dominated the question of who is the best foreign NBA player and after the season he had last year, this is rightfully his superlative to lose. I am excited to see guys like Luka and Giannis try to get back percentages of that vote throughout this season.
Defense
All I am going to mention about this section is that it just doesn’t make sense how these GMs undervalue so heavily both Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. I know I am a Heat fan and I don’t shy away from that fact. But having Evan Mobley as a higher rated interior defender than Bam and current day Kawhi Leonard ranked as a better perimeter defender than Jimmy is just outright disrespectful. Respectfully, next set of questions!
Coaches
This section they finally got right in my book. They gave Erik Spoelstra his flowers and named him the best head coach, best game manager, best at in-game adjustments and best defensive scheme. I am confused at how Ty Lue got second place in best coach, as we have never seen him successful without a star like LeBron or Kawhi, but I guess the GMs know something I don’t when it comes to that. Also, shout out to Chris Paul on being most likely to be a coach after his playing days, although I see him more going into business, but you never know.
Now, there are a bunch of other miscellaneous questions and one that I am very surprised wasn’t asked was ‘Who will win the NBA Cup?’ This is something being pushed so hard by the NBA I am surprised they didn’t take this free opportunity to get us talking about it again.
But this letter has been already way longer than I would have liked it to be and I was able to focus in on the questions I really wanted to get answered which are NBA champ, NBA MVP and Breakout Star. I am excited to be able to look back at this at the end of the year, or not depending on how right I am.
The season officially kicked off yesterday and I am so happy for it to finally be basketball season! Enjoy the packed schedule today. BASKETBALL IS BACK!