League executives fear Adam Silver’s aggressive "3-2-1" lottery proposal unfairly punishes struggling franchises like Sacramento, potentially trapping injury-depleted rosters in a cycle of perpetual rebuilding.
The Sacramento Kings were one of many teams in the NBA competing for a top-four pick in the draft yearly, but commissioner Adam Silver may have cracked down too harshly on tanking.
Silver and the NBA are proposing the "3-2-1" method to curb tanking efforts, which the NBA Board of Governors will vote on May 28. The approach would give teams with the three worst records the same odds of winning the No. 1 pick as others finishing with the 11th to 16th-worst records.
These efforts aim to de-incentivize tanking and increase competition among the bottom teams for increased draft odds, but executives around the league believe the rule change is a bit too harsh.
"Potentially solving the tanking issue that commissioner Adam Silver has vowed to fix, while making it that much harder for the NBA’s worst teams to get out of the basement," Sam Amick and Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic wrote on Sunday. "In the eyes of these executives — many of whom believe this is an overreaction to a problem that was largely inspired by the strength of this particular draft — that’s the irony of this approach."
Executives highlighted the potential flaw in Silver's changes -- the worst teams in the NBA have fewer ways to improve. Sacramento, who finished tied for the fourth-worst record with the Utah Jazz (22-60), would have the same odds to win the lottery as the Phoenix Suns, who finished 45-37 and got swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the playoffs, if they finished with a bottom three record.
The Kings also received the seventh overall pick in May 10's draft lottery after having a 45.2% chance of finishing within the top four. Their draft drought extends to four years without a top-four pick and 37 years without the No. 1 pick.
Excessively losing may be the result of tanking, but there is nuance as to why some teams finish with bad records.
Sacramento lost Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis to season-ending surgeries, Keegan Murray faced ankle issues throughout the season and Russell Westbrook also missed some time to end the year.
Injuries to those players opened more opportunities for these young players -- Devin Carter, Nique Clifford, Daeqwon Plowden, Dylan Cardwell and Maxime Raynaud -- to develop. Development is a bumpy ride, and the talent difference between other teams can show itself.
Malik Monk noted that if the Kings wanted to tank, they would be 0-82, but they aren't. Injuries depleted the team and sometimes, the players didn't string together enough good possessions to win a close game.
Sacramento was investigated for a coaching mistake by coach Doug Christie telling Doug McDermott to foul Seth Curry before the Golden State Warriors got into their set. The Kings were up when McDermott fouled and they ultimately lost the game, which caused an investigation by the NBA.
It ended with no punishment and the intentional foul was deemed a coaching mistake rather than a plan to throw the game.
Although tanking is the most efficient way to increase a team's odds of landing a top-four talent in the draft, various factors play a part in a team -- like the Kings -- finishing with one of the worst records.
Changing the draft format would be more detrimental to the worst teams in the league than beneficial, as there are fewer avenues for improvement.
Join our ROUNDTABLE community! It's free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!