It's certainly hard to find one person in a group of players who can be a _good_ GM. Regardless, I think the key difference here isn't just connecting D&D play

It's certainly hard to find one person in a group of players who can be a _good_ GM. Regardless, I think the key difference here isn't just connecting D&D players, it's more that the GMs are professionals. It's the difference between a professional "murder mystery" dinner, and one that a friend organizes. Sure, the format is largely similar, but the experience is wildly different.