Thunder, Wembanyama Dominate Expert NBA Predictions — SkimNews
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- New York Knicks open the season Tuesday at 7 PM ET on NBC against the Philadelphia 76ers as defending champions for the first time in 53 years.
- LeBron James and Jaylen Brown joined the 76ers in the offseason to pair with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, while Giannis Antetokounmpo was traded to Miami and Jalen Brunson is fresh off a Finals MVP.
- San Antonio Spurs (Victor Wembanyama, coming off a Finals run) face the Oklahoma City Thunder (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander chasing a third straight MVP) at 9:30 PM ET to open the Western Conference slate.
- The Eastern Conference champion expert vote was a five-five tie between the Knicks and 76ers, with the Celtics (3), Pacers (1) and Raptors (1) trailing; no clear conference favorite emerged from the 15 insiders.
- Oklahoma City Thunder ran away with both the Western Conference pick (10 of 15) and the NBA Finals pick (10 of 15), chosen over the Spurs 5 in every Western projection.
- Victor Wembanyama captured the MVP vote 9 to 3 over Luka Doncic, with one vote each for Antetokounmpo, Brunson and Anthony Edwards.
Why it matters: Two-thirds of 15 NBA insiders tabbed the Thunder to win the 2026-27 title and Wembanyama for MVP — a consensus that publicly frames OKC as the team to beat, while the literal 5-5 split between Knicks and 76ers in the East exposes genuine disagreement among league insiders about who actually emerges from the conference that produced last year's champion.
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