NBA Draft tiebreaker rules: Why coin flip determines whether Knicks, Lakers, more get higher draft pick
Tiebreakers have played an increasingly important role in recent NBA Draft history.
NBA Draft tiebreaker rules: Why coin flip determines whether Knicks, Lakers, more get higher draft pick originally appeared on The Sporting News . Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here . Ties are a wretched word in sports.
Three of the four major U. S. -based leagues reject the result's existence outright, while the fourth -- the NFL -- only permits its emergence after space and time itself has been exhausted (but only in regular-season games).
And yet, ties are an inevitable part of the sporting calendar. In the NBA, every team plays 82 games. There are bound to be some teams whose entire campaign comprises of ties.
To make things sharper: every year, spectators are presented with two teams that finish the year with matching records. The draft order is the easiest way to see that carnage unfold. In 2025, the Suns and Trail Blazers posted identical 36-46 records.
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