A Quick Look At The 2018-19 NBA GMs Survey

Personally, I love these surveys. I always find it interesting to see what the people who are pulling the strings of NBA franchises have to think/predict heading into the new season. I put way more stock into it than a silly media prediction or anything like that. If you want to take your time and go through it all you can do that here. There are some things that are obvious, like everyone thinks the Warriors are going to win the title, but there are also some things that will surprise you. Below is a collection of results that stood out to me, and where I think there may be some room for debate

Right off the top we have something that may be a bit controversial. What more does IND have to do to convince people they are really good? Are people unable to not be blinded by the greatness of Giannis to know the Bucks sneaky underachieve? Personally I would have the Pacers ahead, they added to a team that was already better than MIL and as I said in their preview, I do not think what we saw last year was a fluke. I just want the fine people of Indiana to know I have your back.

Obviously anyone with a brain knows LeBron should have won every MVP since like 2003, but that’s a whole different discussion. I find it interesting that GMs think this is the year LeBron is back in the MVP conversation, and it most likely has to do with the fact that they think the LAL will be the 4th best team in the West. Personally, I find that outrageous, and cannot see LeBron winning if this Lakers team is like a 6/7 seed.

While the choice of Giannis wasn’t a surprise to me, the difference between him and AD certainly was. It has to be because AD has an spotty injury history right? Because right now, he’s the better player and although he’s 2 years older I found it surprising he was only at 23%. You can’t go wrong with either obviously, but I would lead AD. Also pretty crazy that even given his age, LeBron ranked so high.

Ts+Ps for KAT though, that’s a rough drop from the leader to not even ranked.

All in on Jamal Murray. Guy is a 21 year old beast who made the transition to PG last year and was pretty damn good. Hopefully you’ve watched DEN the last few nights against the Lakers because let me tell you, they are going to be fun as hell to watch. I thought Gordon was an interesting choice, because I feel like last year was his breakout year. If he’s going to have ANOTHER leap, then he’s going to be a fringe All Star talent.

This may be the most controversial of all the questions. Why? Look at where Kyrie is. All of Houston is mad online that he came in ahead of both Harden and CP3. While I agree he’s among the best in the league, I think tied for 3rd might be a smidge high. Also I want it on record that I did not hack into the voting system and flood his ballot.

Ayton is the easy choice, and his debut certainly confirmed it. The guy is a monster. This has to be rough for any Hawks fan to see, because as you can read, Trae Young is nowhere to be found. People forget they could have just kept the pick and taken Doncic.

Al Horford not making this list is a goddamn crime. Just shows you that in some ways, GMs are morons.

Just a quick question here for those of you that may be able to help. Where is Dwane Casey? Didn’t even receive a vote? Weird. He had a good year lst year though, sure.

Ok Sixers fans, I included this just for you. Don’t let anyone throw actual results or anything like that in your face. You own a pretty big advantage in this voting and you should be proud of that. I for one am rooting for you, I hope all of them turn out to be beyond legit. Let’s have ourselves a real rivalry.

Is there drama brewing in GS? Is it Curry’s team or Durant’s team? How will Curry handle never winning a Finals MVP AND not being allowed to take the shot with the game on the line? These are the important questions I need answers to,.

So basically, we didn’t really learn all that much. Everyone agrees the Warriors are the best and have the best shooting/talent/whatever. We all agree LeBron is the best player on the planet, and we all agree that BOS/PHI are essentially going to be at the top of the East for the next 10 years. Also mentioned in this survey was that GMs wish the playoff seeding was redone as a 1-16, and I guess I’m OK with that. It didn’t bother me really as currently constructed, and part of me thinks there were some bitter GMs out there that pushed for a change.

Either way, it was cool to get a look into the minds of some NBA GMs, and if you can’t tell already I am more than ready for the season to start.