Celtics well represented in annual GM survey

The annual NBA GM survey was released on Tuesday, and the Boston Celtics were well represented. In the survey, all 30 General Managers around the league responded to questions about the best teams, players, coaches, and offseason moves.

It’s worth noting GMs were not allowed to vote for their team’s players or coaches. Percentages were also based on the pool of respondents to the question rather than each individual manager.

Here is what stood out regarding the Celtics.

Title favorites

After an eventful offseason, bookmakers have tabbed the Boston Celtics as the betting favorites to win the 2024 NBA Finals. It turns out that many league executives have the same feeling.

The Celtics were tied with the reigning champion Denver Nuggets for the most votes to win the NBA Finals, with each team earning 33% of the tally.

The Celtics were also the favorites to win the Eastern Conference, garnering 53% of the votes to win the conference, edging out the Milwaukee Bucks, who finished with 43%. The Celtics received 96% of the votes to finish top-two in the conference.

Jayson Tatum voted the best small forward in the NBA

After being named to the All-NBA First Team for the second consecutive year last season, the 25-year-old was voted the best small forward in the NBA, a spot previously held by future hall of famer Kevin Durant. Tatum received 47% of the votes, more than LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, and Luke Doncic. The closest to Tatum was Durant, who earned 20% of the votes.

Tatum also received the third most votes (13%) to win MVP this season, behind just Nikola Jokic (43%) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (20%).

Celtics voted the team that made the best overall moves this offseason

The Celtics made seismic changes this season, moving on from Marcus Smart, Robert Williams, Grant Williams, and Malcolm Brogdon and bringing in Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis. League executives view these trades as good moves for Boston.

Boston was tied with Milwaukee for the team that made the best overall moves this offseason, with each team receiving 23% of the total.

Damian Lillard was voted as the player acquisition that will make the biggest impact, capturing 47% of the votes, with Holiday (13%) finishing second and Porzingis (7%) finishing tied for fourth.

Ironically, Marcus Smart was voted the most underrated player acquisition, receiving 17% of the votes, and Grant Williams finished second with 14% of the tally.

Celtics voted the best defensive team in the NBA

The Celtics have put a clear emphasis on defense this season, and in the eyes of league executives, they are the best defensive team in the league, receiving a whopping 47% of the votes. The Memphis Grizzles finished second with 17%.

Holiday received a significant amount of votes in the individual player questions, receiving 13% of the tally for best defensive player in the league, which was good for second, and 50% for best perimeter defender, which was most by a landslide.

Two Celtics assistants crack the top four for best assistant coach in the NBA

Boston’s coaching staff needed to be revamped this offseason, and they did just that. Most notably, Boston added two assistants with championship experience in Charles Lee, who helped Mike Budenholzer and the Bucks win the Finals in 2021, and Sam Cassell, who won a championship as a player with the Celtics in 2008 and has been an assistant since 2009.

Lee and Cassell were tied for fourth most votes for best assistant coach in the NBA, with each assistant earning 7% of the total.