{"id":43425,"date":"2026-03-27T12:22:19","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T16:22:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-considers-major-changes-to-draft-lottery-to-combat-team-tanking\/"},"modified":"2026-03-27T12:22:19","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T16:22:19","slug":"nba-considers-major-changes-to-draft-lottery-to-combat-team-tanking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-considers-major-changes-to-draft-lottery-to-combat-team-tanking\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Considers Major Changes to Draft Lottery to Combat Team Tanking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n

The National Basketball Association presented three different anti-tanking strategies to team owners during a Wednesday meeting in New York, according to ESPN reporting.<\/p>

Each proposed system shares a significant change from current practice: including teams that reach the playoffs in the draft lottery process.<\/p>

The initial plan would expand lottery participation to 18 franchises \u2014 combining the 10 lowest-performing teams that fail to reach the play-in tournament with the eight squads that earn play-in spots. Under this system, the bottom 10 organizations would each receive identical 8% odds of advancing in the lottery, while the remaining 20% would be distributed among the eight play-in participants in reverse order from positions 11-18. Every position among these 18 spots would be determined through the lottery.<\/p>

A second option expands participation to 22 franchises by adding the four playoff teams eliminated in the first round to the previous 18. Rankings would be determined using combined records from the previous two seasons.<\/p>

This approach includes establishing a minimum victory requirement each season to prevent teams from deliberately losing excessive games. Under a hypothetical 20-win floor, a franchise finishing 14-68 would be calculated as 20-62 for lottery purposes. A team winning 20 games in year one and 40 in year two would be credited with 30 total victories. The first four draft positions would be selected through lottery drawing.<\/p>

Sources described the third option to ESPN as a “five-by-five” system using the same 18 teams from the first proposal. The five worst-performing franchises would receive identical lottery chances, with decreasing odds for remaining teams. Separate drawings would determine the top five selections, followed by another drawing for the other 13 positions.<\/p>

Teams among the five worst that don’t secure top-five picks would be guaranteed no worse than 10th position in the second lottery.<\/p>

Commissioner Adam Silver informed owners Wednesday that changes are necessary following widespread criticism this season regarding teams positioning themselves for advantageous spots in the talent-rich 2026 draft class.<\/p>

“I do think ultimately this is a decision that needs to be made at the ownership level,” Silver said. “It has business implications, has basketball implications, has integrity, integrity, implications for the league.<\/p>

ESPN reports that modifications to all proposals are anticipated before owners conduct a formal vote in May.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The National Basketball Association presented three different proposals to team owners Wednesday aimed at preventing teams from deliberately losing games to improve draft position. All three plans would include playoff teams in the draft lottery for the first time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":43424,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[836],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/news-1774628539425.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbtNqq-bip","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":58892,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-considers-major-draft-lottery-changes-to-combat-team-tanking\/","url_meta":{"origin":43425,"position":0},"title":"NBA Considers Major Draft Lottery Changes to Combat Team Tanking","author":"Admin","date":"April 28, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The NBA is reviewing a new \"3-2-1 Lottery\" system that would expand the draft lottery to 16 teams and reduce the advantages for teams with the worst records. The proposal aims to discourage teams from deliberately losing games to improve their draft position, a practice known as tanking.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777416671836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777416671836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777416671836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/news-1777416671836.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":73408,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-overhauls-draft-lottery-to-combat-team-tanking\/","url_meta":{"origin":43425,"position":1},"title":"NBA Overhauls Draft Lottery to Combat Team Tanking","author":"Admin","date":"May 28, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The NBA's Board of Governors voted 29-1 to implement major changes to the draft lottery system designed to discourage teams from deliberately losing games. The new \"3-2-1 Lottery\" system will reduce the odds for the worst teams to get the top pick while expanding the lottery to 16 teams.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1780002464835.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1780002464835.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1780002464835.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news-1780002464835.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":23705,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-commissioner-announces-new-rules-to-stop-teams-from-tanking\/","url_meta":{"origin":43425,"position":2},"title":"NBA Commissioner Announces New Rules to Stop Teams From Tanking","author":"Admin","date":"February 19, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has informed all 30 team general managers that new regulations will be implemented next season to prevent teams from deliberately losing games. The league is considering several options including changing draft lottery odds and preventing teams from picking in the top four in consecutive years.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/news-1771557447018.jpg?fit=450%2C300&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":43504,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-explores-three-new-plans-to-stop-teams-from-deliberately-losing-games\/","url_meta":{"origin":43425,"position":3},"title":"NBA Explores Three New Plans to Stop Teams From Deliberately Losing Games","author":"Admin","date":"March 27, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The National Basketball Association has presented three different strategies to team owners aimed at preventing franchises from intentionally losing games to improve draft position. Commissioner Adam Silver plans a special ownership vote in May to address what he calls a persistent problem in professional basketball.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/news-1774636657053.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/news-1774636657053.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/news-1774636657053.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/news-1774636657053.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":64230,"url":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/nba-draft-lottery-sunday-could-reward-teams-that-lost-on-purpose\/","url_meta":{"origin":43425,"position":4},"title":"NBA Draft Lottery Sunday Could Reward Teams That Lost on Purpose","author":"Admin","date":"May 9, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The NBA will determine draft order this Sunday through its annual lottery system, with Washington, Brooklyn, and Utah having the best chances at the top pick after historically poor seasons. 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Cuban criticized the league's recent fines against teams for tanking, arguing the NBA should focus more on fan affordability than game integrity concerns.","rel":"","context":"In "Sports"","block_context":{"text":"Sports","link":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/category\/sports\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/news-1771368339114.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/news-1771368339114.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/news-1771368339114.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/news-1771368339114.jpg?fit=1000%2C666&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43424"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tvdelmarva.com\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}