The ramp-up to the NBA season is in full effect. As all 30 squads across the NBA prepare for the regular season, those around the league, from front-office staff to media members, begin to make their predictions before the season tips off on October 22. Among all projections, the annual NBA GM Survey is the most polarizing.
The GM Survey offers team and individual predictions, reactions to offseason moves, and numerous answers to miscellaneous questions prompted annually. Although relatively baseline, the survey is so instrumental because of those who participate. If not for General Managers around the league responding to such questions, the survey would lack its heightened polarization.
Several themes throughout the survey exist. The two biggest themes are the respondent's admiration for the Boston Celtics and the overall acceptance of the NBA's youth movement. The Celtics were voted as the resounding favorites to bring home another Larry O'Brien Trophy (83 percent). Besides the NBA Finals prediction, Boston earned 97 percent of respondents' votes to win the Eastern Conference.
Evidence of the NBA's youth movement is littered throughout the survey. One of the youngest teams, the Oklahoma City Thunder, was projected to finish with the best record in the Western Conference (80 percent). Furthermore, the Thunder's best player, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was predicted to win the Most Valuable Player Award. Aside from the 26-year-old star, Victor Wembanyama's name frequented the survey. The 7-foot-4 phenom took home the honors of best defender and interior defender. Additionally, Wembanyama was anointed as the best building block in the NBA.
Anthony Edwards was voted most athletic and best SG
Continuing with the pattern of youth, the Minnesota Timberwolves' 23-year-old superstar Anthony Edwards was declared the best shooting guard and the most athletic player in the NBA by the GMs. After receiving several votes a season ago, Edwards took home 33 percent of votes for the best shooting guard—narrowly edging out last year's recipient, Devin Booker (23 percent).
Edwards earned nearly half of the GMs' votes for the league's most athletic player at 45 percent. Ending up in second place was two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo (17 percent). Finding himself on the most athletic list is commonplace for Edwards. Last year, the high-flying shooting guard earned 24 percent of votes—finishing in third place behind Ja Morant and Antetokounmpo, respectively.
Edwards' ascension has coincided with Minnesota's meteoric rise. The Timberwolves earned the most second and third-place votes to win the Western Conference. Since being drafted by the Wolves in 2020, Edwards' impact has been second to none. The 6-foot-4 guard has earned two All-Star appearances and an All-NBA Second Team placement. Besides the individual accolades, the Wolves have recorded three consecutive trips to the playoffs and a Western Conference Finals appearance.
The NBA General Managers are well aware of Edwards' ascension, and the annual survey is the latest indicator. The 2020 first-overall pick has reshaped the Timberwolves' franchise from an afterthought to a perennial contender.