Fresh NBA Rumors Uncover Insiders' Takes on Draft Lottery Rule Change Proposals to Stop Tanking

The NBA's recent proposals to help curb tanking do have support from within the league.

Per NBA insider Marc Stein and Jake Fischer, there is "strong" support from numerous general managers and team owners for two of the proposed resolutions, including flattening the odds for the top pick to eight percent for all 10 teams that miss the play-in tournament and expanding the lottery to 18 teams to include all of the clubs that reach the play-in tournament regardless of whether or not they make the playoffs.

ESPN's Shams Charania reported the three proposals presented to the board of governors on Friday. In addition to the two previously-mentioned ideas, the other one involved a 22-team lottery that is determined by using a two-year record and would require a minimum win total floor in each season.

The proposals come amid criticism that teams not in serious playoff contention are incentivized to lose games, and how seemingly aggressive many of them have been in ensuring they do so.

There was one point earlier this week when the top three teams in the lottery standings—Indiana Pacers, Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards—had combined to lose 39 straight games.

The Utah Jazz, who are currently fifth in the lottery standings, were fined $500,000 by the NBA last month for conduct detrimental to the league for sitting Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the fourth quarter of close games against the Orlando Magic on Feb. 7 and Miami Heat on Feb. 9.

Earlier this week, the National Basketball Players Association issued a statement critical of the Milwaukee Bucks and the league for not properly enforcing the player participation policy after reports the Bucks wanted to shut down Giannis Antetokounmpo for the remainder of the season even though he wants to continue playing when he recovers from a knee injury.

Even though the NBA previously attempted to make it less attractive to tank by flattening the lottery odds in 2019 so the top three teams have the same percentage chance to win the No. 1 pick, it hasn't dramatically changed the way clubs out of contention approach things.

Since the change was made, the team with the worst record has never won the top overall pick. In fact, the team with the league's worst record has picked fifth in each of the past three drafts.

But the lottery does ensure that a team with the worst record can't pick lower than fifth, the second-worst record can't pick lower than sixth, etc. That does have tremendous value, particularly in a year like 2026 that is regarded as having a lot of talent beyond the very top of the class.

Charania reported the NBA is holding a special board of governors meeting in May where the subject of tanking will be a key topic.

Any potential rule changes have to be approved from a vote of the board of governors. Given the timing of a potential vote, if any of the anti-tanking proposals pass, it likely wouldn't go into effect until the 2027 draft.