This year’s NBA General Manager survey, marking its 25th anniversary, dropped a ton of insights, and honestly, the Boston Celtics were absolutely front and center in a lot of the talk. While they’re picked to finish fourth in the East, the real story is how GMs are looking at the coaching staff. Seriously, get this: Joe Mazzulla, the reigning NBA Coach of the Year, pulled in exactly *zero* votes for the best coach in the league! That’s a wild stat, right?
The Eastern Conference Outlook: Where Do the Celtics Actually Stack Up?
So, let’s talk about those Eastern Conference standings predictions first. The GMs went big on the New York Knicks, giving them a massive 60% of the vote for first place. That’s a huge endorsement for the Big Apple. The “new look” Philadelphia 76ers snagged second, with the Cleveland Cavaliers rolling into third. Our guys in green, the Boston Celtics, landed at fourth place with 27% of the voters putting them there. Now, that’s an improvement from last year’s survey, where they were eighth, so that’s a positive bump! But here’s the kicker: they only got a 7% chance to finish at the very top of the East, tied with Cleveland. It tells you GMs respect them, but maybe aren’t fully sold on them being the top dog just yet.
Celtics Coaches Dominate… But Mazzulla Gets a Head-Scratcher
Okay, if there’s one area where the Celtics really popped off in this survey, it’s coaching. Joe Mazzulla, despite that “zero votes for best coach” shocker, was actually tied for first place as the best manager/motivator in the league, alongside Warriors’ Steve Kerr and Heat’s Erik Spoelstra, all at 23%. That’s some serious respect for how he handles the locker room and keeps the guys fired up. When it came to in-game adjustments, he was fifth with 7% of the vote, with Pacers’ Rick Carlisle leading that one. Mazzulla also got votes for running the best offensive schemes and best defensive schemes. It’s truly wild how he can be seen as a top motivator, scheme guy, and Coach of the Year, but GMs don’t want to crown him “best coach overall.” If you ask Joe, he probably doesn’t even care, but for us fans, it’s a head-scratcher!
And the love for the coaching staff doesn’t stop there. Assistant coach Sam Cassell, who’s been with Boston since 2023 and is constantly rumored as a hot head coach candidate, tied for fifth place in the best assistant coach category with 7% of the vote. It’s awesome to see him getting that league-wide respect. Even former Celtics senior consultant, now Clippers assistant, Jeff Van Gundy took first there. And get this: Celtics guard Mike Conley won by a massive margin, pulling in 50% of the votes, for which active player will make the best head coach someday! Derrick White even received votes in that category too. Conley was brought in for his veteran presence, and he’s already getting “glowing reviews” from everyone. His relationship with Payton Pritchard? Can’t wait to see how that dynamic plays out on the court this season.
As for the MVP race, Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama is the overwhelming favorite, grabbing 77% of the vote. But hey, our Celtics coaches are making noise, and that’s what matters!
So, what’s next? The GMs have made their predictions. Now, it’s up to the Celtics to go out there and prove them right about the coaching staff, and maybe even a little wrong about that fourth-place finish. Can they climb higher than the GMs expect in the East and show everyone that Mazzulla’s got it all covered? That’s the question we’ll be watching all season long.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Celtics Blog.
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