HUDSON — Dear NBA Competition Committee, in April of 2023 the Dallas Mavericks were fined $750,000 for resting players in a game. The act was classified as “overt tanking”. Fast forward three years later, the situation has worsened.
Recently the Utah Jazz ($500,000) and the Indiana Pacers ($100,000) were fined for the same violation as the Mavericks. Tanking has always been a struggle in the NBA, but not to this magnitude. Resting players in order to lose games felt like an inherent problem to the draft lottery structure. The bottom three teams receive 14% chances to obtain the number one pick and percentages go down in increments of 1.5 until the lottery is done at pick 14. Currently, the flaws in this format are becoming more prominent than ever.
Jusuf Nurkic, the starting center for the Utah Jazz, was beginning a resurgence in his NBA career before the tanking monster captured him as well. The Jazz felt their chances at a top pick were not as high if Nurkic kept balling out. The center is now dealing with a “Season-ending nose injury”. Nurkic, the Jazz, the NBA and the fans all know this is phony. A change needs to be made immediately.
First, teams should not be allowed to put protections on draft picks when trading them. If you trade the pick, the pick is gone without any tanking incentives. Second, teams should be blocked from selecting in the top four after two consecutive years. Finally, if a team is caught intentionally indulging in any form of tanking their draft pick should automatically be vacated. These three rules will eliminate any incentive to tank, and scare teams from even trying.
Organizations are hindering star players careers, decreasing revenue, and worsening the league’s product. Conveniently, the problem reaches its apex in a year projecting to have a generational draft class. The reward for tanking teams is at an all time high. If you rest players enough to even enter the lottery you secure a quality player, and if you get into the top five range you’re choosing between AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, and other talents who previous drafts just didn’t have.
If no efforts are made, fans won’t be able to see their favorite players when watching games, players won’t be able to display their talent, and the NBA won’t be operating to its full potential.
