NEW YORK — Opposing NBA general managers are bullish about Jalen Brunson, but not as much about the Knicks’ chances to repeat as NBA champions.
Only one of the other 29 general managers picked the Knicks to win the 2026-27 title, according to the NBA’s annual GM survey, which came out Thursday.
The San Antonio Spurs received 50% of the votes, while the Oklahoma City Thunder received 43%.
All 30 general managers took part in the anonymous survey but were not permitted to vote for their own team.
Based on the math, the Spurs received 15 votes and the Thunder got 13. Of the remaining two votes, the Knicks and revamped Philadelphia 76ers received one apiece.
The survey’s results are in lockstep with Las Vegas’ betting odds, as DraftKings pegs the Spurs and Thunder as championship co-favorites at +270, with the Knicks and Sixers (+900) tied for a distant third.
Still, it’s unusual to see a defending champion receive so few votes in the GM survey. Last year, for example, 80% of the GMs picked the Thunder to repeat.
The Knicks defeated the young, ascending Spurs in five games in the Finals.
The general managers still view the Knicks as the favorites to come out of the Eastern Conference, with 60% voting for them — well ahead of the Sixers, who received 23% of the first-place nods.
The Cleveland Cavaliers (7%), Boston Celtics (7%) and Detroit Pistons (3%) also received first-place votes in the survey’s Eastern Conference rankings.
The Knicks return the bulk of last season’s championship roster, including all five starters. Game-wrecking backup center Mitchell Robinson left in free agency for a three-year, $47.4 million contract with the Boston Celtics, marking the Knicks’ only significant offseason departure. The Knicks signed veteran center Andre Drummond to help replace him.
An NBA champion has not repeated since the 2017-18 Golden State Warriors.
“At the end of the day, we write our own history,” Knicks guard Josh Hart said at last month’s media day.
“That’s the past. It has no precedent on what the future is going to hold. For us, we’re not really worried about it. We’re worried about etching our own stories and our own legacies.”
Other answers in the GM survey were more favorable toward the Knicks, and to Brunson in particular.
The general managers pegged Brunson the NBA’s best leader with 53% of the votes. The Warriors’ Stephen Curry finished second at 20%.
Brunson finished second for the NBA’s best point guard at 20%, trailing only OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who received 67% of votes.
Mike Brown (10%) finished third for best head coach behind Miami’s Erik Spoelstra and Oklahoma City’s Mark Daigneault.
And OG Anunoby received 10% of votes for the NBA’s most versatile defender, good for a fourth-place tie. He also received votes for best perimeter defender and most versatile player.