We’re at the time of year when talk turns to tanking in the NBA, and everyone gives their best solution, including commissioner Adam Silver.
Before we get to his idea, I’d like to say that I don’t find tanking to be a huge problem as a fan. There are a certain number of teams that do it every year, and in a year like this, when the draft class is so hyped up, it’s understandable.
Pundits always act shocked every season as if this is a new phenomenon, but it’s been going on since the draft lottery was invented. You can try to invalidate it as a strategy for team building, but just look at the Pistons and Spurs, two teams that were bottom feeders just a few seasons ago and are now two of the best in the league. It only happened because they got the number one pick in the right year, as if you removed Cade Cunningham and/Victor Wembanyama from their respective teams, and they are mediocre at best.
But it still took hitting on later picks and adding the right veterans for those teams to take off, so tanking alone won’t get you there (ask Troy Weaver), you still have to build a team around the guys you draft.
It has worked in some cases, but not in others, so tanking doesn’t guarantee anything. I also think fans understand and don’t really care, as they know it can lead directly to a franchise-altering superstar.
My feeling is that the latest uproar has more to do with gambling than basketball, but that’s a topic for another day.
I get fans that hate tanking, but if I’m being honest, it doesn’t hinder my enjoyment of the game, as the teams that are doing it are bad anyway, and “tanking” usually just means playing young guys.
You can argue whether it ruins the sport, but Adam Silver’s idea would certainly be bad for the Pistons and teams like them.
Adam Silver has never had a good idea
Ok, so that’s unfair, as I am sure Silver has had some good ideas. I like the play-in tournament for example, but most of his genius plans have little to do with fans.
I’ve lit Silver up a few times for his terrible ideas, which are rarely things people actually want or ask for. Ratings are down? It has nothing to do with people stealing your product because it’s blacked out! Let’s shorten the season! Let’s add AI!
Can’t afford to pay $800 to watch your team? Watch them on Tik Tok! Let them eat highlights!
His latest anti-tanking measure lines up with these other gems, as Silver said the league would “seriously consider” (subscription) getting rid of the draft altogether and just allowing rookies to enter the league as free agents.
It’s one of his worst ideas, and that’s saying something.
The Draft is the only thing making the league fair
The two best teams in the NBA right now are the OKC Thunder and Detroit Pistons. Do you think that would be true if these two teams had to attract free agents as their only means to acquire elite talent?
The league has had seven champs in as many years. Do you think that would be the case if every young player could just choose to go to the Lakers and Heat? And why wouldn’t they? Shoe and other endorsement deals will be more for players in big markets like New York and LA, so why would the top guys choose OKC? Why would they choose Detroit?
This would essentially end the parity the league has built, and what has made it more exciting in recent years. Small and mid-market teams would be completely screwed, and it would be difficult for bad teams to become good.
There are ways of tinkering with the draft (I like the idea of a minimum win total to be eligible for a top pick) without getting rid of it completely, which would destroy everything the NBA has spent the last decade building.