NBA Draft Lottery: League reportedly focused on 18-team revamp in effort to curb tanking
The NBA is determined to put an end to tanking.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has one goal in mind when the league hosts a general managers’ meeting Tuesday: To put an end to tanking. The league and its general managers are expected to discuss methods to curb tanking Tuesday, which could include a significant revamp to the NBA Draft Lottery. While the NBA has presented a few proposals aimed at changing the lottery, the “heavy frontrunner” reportedly involves a draft lottery that will feature 18 teams and altered odds , according to The Athletic.
In that option, 18 teams would be included in the lottery portion of the draft. That would differ from the current format, which features 14 teams. Additionally, the odds for the top pick would be altered.
In the 18-team proposal, the bottom 10 teams would all have an eight percent chance at landing the No. 1 overall pick. The remaining 20 percent “would be divided among the remaining eight teams,” per The Athletic.
Under the current lottery system, the three worst teams have a 14 percent chance of getting the No. 1 overall pick and the rest of the teams in the lottery have declining odds. While the league and its general managers will reportedly discuss that — and other — proposals Tuesday, an official vote isn’t expected until the Board of Governors meetings in May.