NBA Teams Looking Into New Ways To Prevent Teams From Tanking

[CFAN38]

https://x.com/CarmichaelDave/status/2022179732209684774



I really like this guys idea, I know it will never happen but to paraphrase

Create an Eastern, Western, and "Leastern" conferneces

The "Leastern is not playoff eligible but players a normal NBA schedule.

At the end of the season the  top teams in the leastern conference get promoted to the Eastern or Western and earn the top picks in the draft.

The worst East/West teams get relegated.

 

[Roy H.]

Yeah, relegation will never happen in major American sports.  It would solve tanking, though, in theory.

[wdleehi]

To much money lost by owner to ever do relegation.   


They want to reduce tanking, if a team is in the high lottery more then 2 straight years, they start getting a reduced amount of the shared revenue (but this does not effect the the players salary) every extra year they are there.

So the players on the team still get their money, the team and owner gets a reduced amount.  (in fact, they can connect that reduction percentage to what the GM makes as well)

[Kernewek]

They want to reduce tanking, if a team is in the high lottery more then 2 straight years, they start getting a reduced amount of the shared revenue (but this does not effect the the players salary) every extra year they are there.

So the players on the team still get their money, the team and owner gets a reduced amount.  (in fact, they can connect that reduction percentage to what the GM makes as well)

How do you differentiate a team that is tanking from a bad team?

And who is going to take the GM gig to 'right the ship' if they could make more money with a better-performing franchise?

[wdleehi]

They want to reduce tanking, if a team is in the high lottery more then 2 straight years, they start getting a reduced amount of the shared revenue (but this does not effect the the players salary) every extra year they are there.

So the players on the team still get their money, the team and owner gets a reduced amount.  (in fact, they can connect that reduction percentage to what the GM makes as well)

How do you differentiate a team that is tanking from a bad team?

And who is going to take the GM gig to 'right the ship' if they could make more money with a better-performing franchise?

You don't.   Not every team that is out of the playoffs are being punished.   But lets say you are a team that has had top 5 or 6 lotto odds for two plus years, the team falls into this.   (it doesn't hurt teams that have bad lotto odds and happen to win the lotto)


I am sure there will be exception made in case of major injuries or such.   


But it will force teams to try and make progress.   

[Donoghus]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

[Celtics2021]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

Tough call.  If I am the 8-seed and have 10% chance of beating the 1-seed or a 20% chance of a top 3 pick, won?t I just tank the play-in games for that top 3 pick?

[Donoghus]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

Tough call.  If I am the 8-seed and have 10% chance of beating the 1-seed or a 20% chance of a top 3 pick, won?t I just tank the play-in games for that top 3 pick?

You probably will but are you benching your top players in the 4th quarter of early February regular season games in that scenario?

[wdleehi]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

Tough call.  If I am the 8-seed and have 10% chance of beating the 1-seed or a 20% chance of a top 3 pick, won?t I just tank the play-in games for that top 3 pick?

Don't include play-in teams.

[Celtics2021]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

Tough call.  If I am the 8-seed and have 10% chance of beating the 1-seed or a 20% chance of a top 3 pick, won?t I just tank the play-in games for that top 3 pick?

Don't include play-in teams.

Then you just might as well kill the play-in as everyone will be losing to avoid it.  And for that matter they will avoid being the 8th seed too.

[wdleehi]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

Tough call.  If I am the 8-seed and have 10% chance of beating the 1-seed or a 20% chance of a top 3 pick, won?t I just tank the play-in games for that top 3 pick?

Don't include play-in teams.

Then you just might as well kill the play-in as everyone will be losing to avoid it.  And for that matter they will avoid being the 8th seed too.

Maybe, but the teams will play harder during the play-in game when there are now more eyes on it.   

[CFAN38]

Yeah, relegation will never happen in major American sports.  It would solve tanking, though, in theory.

I agree that the traditional soccer relegation will never happen but this idea where one conference is not playoff eligible is at least interesting. Schedule stays the same, profit sharing stays the same, the only real negative is teams start the season knowing playoffs are not an option. Never going to happen but its at least an interesting thought exercise that really could work if implemented.

[President Red]

Maybe a good & less drastic start would be going back to a non-weighted lottery for the non-playoff teams.  It won't end all tanking but might be a step in the right direction.  Sure, a team might pull an 90s ORL but I have to imagine that scenario is better than the current situation of blatant tanking for higher percentages.

Many people dislike this idea, but I always have felt that the lottery should be open to all the teams in the league, and should apply to every pick in the first round (at least).  Weight it such that the top teams have only a minimal chance of getting a high pick, but give them an actual shot.

That would reduce the urge to tank, though it wouldn't eliminate it completely.  It also wouldn't penalize teams significantly for overachieving.  In addition. it would address a problem with the salary cap structure.  For example, I could imagine a team good enough to have one of the top records in the league a year after winning a championship, but then that team is forced to divest itself of good players due to salary cap/apron restrictions.  The team that had the great record is gone, and the team that remains had no shot at getting one of the allegedly top players in the draft to help it rebuild.