NBA teams who intentionally lose games to get a better draft pick will soon have to thinking twice now that the board of governors has instituted new anti-tanking measures.
NBA insider Shams Charania announced on Thursday that the NBA Board of Governors passed the 3-2-1 rule, which aims to alter the draft lottery away from anti-competitive teams.
“The NBA’s Board of Governors has passed new anti-tanking rules that include expanding the draft lottery from 14 to 16 teams, a relegation zone where the bottom 3 teams get penalized with lessened chances for the No. 1 pick, and flattened odds, sources tell ESPN,” noted Charania.
The new rules will be fully implemented with the 2027 lottery, per the New York Post, with potential punishments for teams that intentionally tank, including “reduced lottery odds to even draft-position moves.”
The new system gives all 16 teams a chance to win the first overall pick. Each team will be assigned lottery balls. The three worst teams will receive two balls, but there is no way they will fall past the 12th pick.
The next seven teams that missed the playoffs will receive three lottery balls. The four teams that received the Nos. 9 and 10 seeds in the play-in games will receive two lottery balls.
Lastly, the two teams that lose in the No. 7-8 play-in games will get one lottery ball.
A majority of teams supported the 3-2-1 Rule and it passed with relatively little pushback from the board. It will be implemented through 2029, after which, the board will assess its effect.
In February, the NBA fined the Utah Jazz $500,000 for pulling starters during the fourth quarter of two regular season games. In 2023, the Mavericks were fined $750,000 for sitting key players to protect a first-round draft pick.