The NBA, led by Commissioner Adam Silver, is making a strong push to address the issue of tanking, a strategy where teams intentionally lose games to improve their draft lottery odds. This comes during a season where a significant portion of the league is engaging in this practice.
On Friday, Shams Charania of ESPN reported that the NBA has introduced three new anti-tanking proposals to the Board of Governors. These proposals are expected to undergo revisions before a formal vote in May.
The first proposal suggests flattening the lottery odds even further. Currently, the bottom four teams have equal odds of landing the top pick, but this proposal extends that to the bottom 10 teams. Additionally, the lottery would expand to include 18 spots, covering all teams in the Play-In tournament, rather than just the current 14.
The second proposal maintains the current four-team lottery draw but changes the criteria for inclusion. It would consider the records of all teams that didn't advance past the second playoff round, using results from the past two seasons. This means a team like the Pacers, with 16 wins this season, would have their previous season's record factored into their lottery odds.
The third proposal is a slight modification of the current system. It would adjust the odds for the bottom five teams instead of four and allow the worst team to potentially fall to the 10th pick, rather than the sixth as it stands now.
Critics argue that these proposals might not effectively eliminate tanking, suggesting that the practice could simply evolve into a different form under these new rules.
In other NBA news, the salary cap for the 2026-27 season is projected to be slightly lower than expected. While still increasing from this season, the cap is now estimated to be around $165 million, down from a projected $166 million. This minor adjustment is attributed to a decline in local TV revenues across the league.