The NBA released its annual survey of general managers on Tuesday, otherwise known as the league’s readily available crutch to lean on when a team doesn’t match expectations. Much of the survey heaped praise on LeBron James (most athletic, best finisher), Kevin Durant (predicted MVP, even though he wasn’t picked as the best at either forward position) and Kyrie Irving (predicted rookie of the year, even though Ricky Rubio was picked as most likely to have a breakout season).
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The GMs overlooked Philadelphia in favor of the rapidly aging Boston Celtics as their winner of the Atlantic Division. They said the Los Angeles Clippers would be the most improved, but they still overwhelmingly picked the Lakers to win the Pacific Division.
Two Wizards showed up on the survey: John Wall was picked as second-fastest in the league with the ball behind Derrick Rose, and Jan Vesely was tied with Denver rookie Kenneth Faried as the second-most athletic rookie behind Minnesota’s Derrick Williams.
– Craig Stouffer
