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Relegation in the NBA?
A recent report by ESPN suggests commissioner Adam Silver is open to all possibilities in preventing teams from tanking — or intentionally putting out a mediocre product with the intent of increasing draft lottery odds.
The act of relegation “would essentially mean demoting the worst one or two teams to the G League while promoting the best team or two from the G League to the NBA,” per the report.
Silver was asked about tanking this week; it’s expected to be an issue this season considering the highly touted prospect Victor Wembanyama is set to be the first pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. The worse a team is this year, the better chance it has of drafting a player who could make them great for years.
Silver was quick to admit relegation is not feasible now or in the immediate future. G League teams largely act as “Triple-A” teams for NBA franchises; they lack the resources and depth needed to compete over an 82-game season. That’s not to mention the chasm it would create from an economic standpoint.
“It would so disrupt our business model,” Silver said. “And even if you took two teams up from the G League, they wouldn’t be equipped to compete in the NBA.”
Per Five Thirty Eight, there are already four teams with a one percent chance or less of even making the playoffs, let alone winning a championship. That number will grow, as will front office executives’ eyes with every Wembanyama highlight. The race to the bottom is underway. While there’s not much that will stop them this year, the league is leaving no stone unturned to make sure tanking will one day be a relic.
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