The Oklahoma City Thunder have been projected by nearly every pundit, including Vegas, to be the Western Conference champions and serious title contenders in the 2024-25 season. As we get closer to the start of the NBA season, more and more predictions will come, even within the association.
ESPN has released its annual report card Survey of general managers This week, key decision makers were asked who would win the NBA Finals, and the Boston Celtics (8) and Oklahoma City Thunder (7) won the votes.
“Boston and OKC once again dominate the vote for the next league champion, with the panel giving a slight edge to the Celtics capturing the No. 19 banner over the Thunder who take first place,” Bontemps said.
The Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks and Minnesota Timberwolves each received one vote. Only the Thunder and Celtics had multiple executives vote to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy.
Oklahoma City is rightfully just one vote behind the Boston Celtics after a stellar offseason that saw the Thunder’s Alex Caruso and Isaiah Hartenstein fully address the two biggest weaknesses of last year’s team.
Integrating those two pieces into the existing core that includes rising stars Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, while MVP finalist Shai Gilgeous-Alexander drives the bus alongside a high-powered rotation designed by Coach of the Year Mark Daigneault.
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