LeBron James shepherded the Lakers through an unexpected 18-month blip where the team wasn’t even remotely competitive. His steady leadership eventually led to the right moves by the front office which he maximized with a Western Conference Finals run last season.
This has earned the respect of GMs around the league, as LeBron has been voted as the best leader in the NBA in the 2023/24 NBA GM Survey.
The list is as follows.
1. LeBron James, L.A. Lakers – 27%
2. Stephen Curry, Golden State – 23%
3. Nikola Jokic, Denver – 17%
T-4. Jimmy Butler, Miami – 7%
T-4. Damian Lillard, Milwaukee – 7%
T-4. Chris Paul, Golden State – 7%
Also receiving votes: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee; Jalen Brunson, New York; Draymond Green, Golden State; Jrue Holiday, Boston
LeBron has always been respected as a great leader but it’s not often that people say it out loud given everything else you can say about him. Chris Paul has been receiving a lot of love on the leadership front in recent years, but he had a pretty big fall-off in this list after convincingly winning the vote last season.
Stephen Curry is right up with James, showing that Paul is now a secondary leader on the Warriors. Nikola Jokic and Jimmy Butler getting votes is not surprising, but Damian Lillard featuring here after his controversial departure from the Portland Trail Blazers caught me off-guard.
The 2023/24 NBA GM Survey Was Incredibly Detailed
Leadership was still a very tame discussion point for the NBA GMs, as they laid down opinions on all things related to the NBA for the upcoming season.
Nikola Jokic’s achievements last season have catapulted him into being looked at as the unanimous best player in the NBA. The survey has Jokic as the favorite to win MVP, the best international player, and the ideal player to build a franchise around, among various other points. A whopping 93% of voters chose him as the best center in the NBA ahead of reigning MVP Joel Embiid.
Giannis Antetokounmpo was rated very heavily as well, being called the most versatile player in the NBA ahead of LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Giannis was also voted as the best defender in the NBA and as the best multi-positional player in the league.
Naturally, Stephen Curry was voted as the best shooter, Ja Morant as the most athletic, De’Aaron Fox as the fastest, and Victor Wembanyama as the favorite to win Rookie of the Year.
Team-wise, it seems big expectations are already in place for the Nuggets and Celtics. The Nuggets have been voted as the team GMs expect to have the most efficient offense and best home-court advantage. The Celtics are expected to have the best defense in the league. Both teams received 33% of the vote when asked who the GMs expect to win the title next season.
The Bucks are a clear third-choice team behind the Nuggets and Celtics, receiving 23% of the vote. Giannis has been deeply admired by GMs in this survey, with the Damian Lillard addition further boosting their chances. The Suns and Clippers also received votes in this category.
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