Silver insists NBA will 'fix' tanking issue before next season, says he likes 65-game rule
NEW YORK (AP) — Tanking is going to be addressed. The 65-game rule might remain. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver insisted Wednesday that the league will change its draft process and address its tanking problem before the start of next season.
And he pointed to the league's player participation policy — citing the effect it has had on load management — as proof of how the league can make effective fixes. The league's board of governors discussed tanking — the issue of teams trying not to win in order to enhance their odds of landing the best possible draft pick — at its two-day meeting that ended Wednesday. No votes were taken and no fingers were pointed at any specific teams, Silver said.
“We are going to fix it,” Silver said. “Full stop. ” Silver said the league has been working on the most recent tanking issues for months — and noted that the NBA has addressed the problem countless times over the years, including with several changes to the draft and lottery process.
“I would say it seemed unanimous in the room that we needed to make a change, and we need to make a change for next season," Silver said at a news conference, wrapping up the two-day session with owners. "Exactly what that change is, we’re continuing to work on. ...
I think there’s also unanimous agreement that we need to make this change in advance of the draft and free agency this year, so all the teams understand the rules of the road going into next year. ” The next step, Silver said, will likely be a special board meeting in May to get something done. The league's general managers have discussed the matter multiple times, and numerous teams have offered some sort of suggestion about how to fix the issue.