No one will argue there’s a problem with tanking in the NBA. The real argument centers around fixing the problem, and the different methods the league could implement to do so.
The NBA lottery draft has been around for years, but according to a report from Zach Lowe of Grantland, that could change.
One team official submitted a proposal to the NBA detailing a way of improving the draft. Reportedly, top NBA officials like the idea and are considering showing it to team owners sometime in 2014.
This is what the new structure would look like:
Instead of the lottery there would be a wheel. This “wheel” will span 30 years (equivalent to the number of teams currently in the league) in time and gives every team the same opportunity in the draft.
Over the 30-year span, each team will receive 30 picks, ranging from no. 1 through no. 30. No team will receive the same pick twice. The draft order wouldn’t be consecutive picks, but follows a pattern to even up the ways picks are distributed each year.
Lowe does an excellent job depicting what the wheel would look like.
For example, if one team was awarded the top pick to begin this new process. That team’s second pick would be 30th overall, its selection the next year would be 10th. Start at the top and go clockwise, that’s the pattern in which this follows.
It’s designed so teams aren’t stuck in a bad cycle where they have five picks in a row that are in the twenties. It would also prevent any team from getting a top six draft pick within five years of each other.
If this were to happen, it would be almost a decade away. All current trades involved draft picks would have to be completed first.
The NBA trying to eliminate tanking is respectable, but there might be better ways than this. The model takes away the fun that comes with the draft lottery. It also makes the NBA too predictable, knowing exactly where teams are going to pick 30 years from now.
Here’s another concern with it: let’s assume there’s a college superstar who everyone knows will be the first pick. For example, in 2025 the Minnesota Timberwolves will have the first pick, and in 2026 the Los Angeles Lakers have the first pick. What team do you think he’ll want to play for? In more cases than not, college kids will likely change when they enter the draft because they want to end up with a specific team.
This is very far down the road, and it is only one option. But, all things considered, it’s a recipe that could take a lot of fun out of the NBA.
Brett Poirier is a contributor to Sheridan Hoops. Follow @BrettNBA