New York (AFP) – Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs were predicted to win the 2027 title, with the French superstar taking Most Valuable Player honors in an NBA team general managers survey released on Thursday. In the 25th annual survey, general managers answered 48 questions and could not vote for their own team or personnel.
The Spurs, who lost to New York in last June’s NBA Finals, were ranked the top choice as champion for the upcoming campaign by 50 percent of the 30 executives, with Oklahoma City second at 43 percent. New York and Philadelphia, the new club of LeBron James, also received votes. Last year, Oklahoma City won the poll with 80 percent of GMs picking the Thunder to win the title.
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The Spurs edged the Thunder as the top pick in the Western Conference, while New York was the first choice in the East, followed by Philadelphia. Wembanyama, the top overall pick of the 2023 NBA Draft and 2024 NBA Rookie of the Year, topped the survey in eight different questions regarding players.
The 7-foot-4 (2.24m) center, who took the Defensive Player of the Year award last season, was predicted to be the next MVP by 77 percent of general managers, a record level of support in the survey. Denver’s Nikola Jokic, a Serbian center and three-time NBA MVP, was the second choice at 10 percent.
Wembanyama won as the player the GMs would want to start a franchise at a record 93 percent. The 22-year-old was also named the top pick as the NBA’s best defender and most versatile player, among other categories. Spurs guard Dylan Harper was named the player most likely to have a breakout 2026-27 campaign.
© 2024 AFP
