NBA commissioner Adam Silver announced that the league will implement notable adjustments to the draft lottery next season to discourage intentional losing, though he said the changes will not constitute a full system overhaul.
Speaking at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, Silver described himself as someone who prefers gradual reform rather than dramatic shifts.
“Not to exactly forecast where we’re going, but I think I’m sort – I am an incrementalist,” Silver said.
“I think we got to be a little bit careful, you know, about how huge a change we make at once. I’m not ruling anything out, but I am paying attention to that. And then there’s something significantly more than, I would say, just tinkering with the existing system.”
Silver highlighted protected draft picks as a central flaw in the current structure.
Teams can trade selections but keep them if they land within certain ranges, creating what the league calls “cliffs.”
Those cutoffs can encourage teams to aim for worse records to retain valuable picks.
“Where you have sort of arbitrary lines of protected draft picks, creating huge incentives to be the sixth-worst record instead of the fifth,” Silver said.
He added that the highly anticipated 2026 draft class has fueled tanking concerns this season.
Prospects AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, and Cam Boozer lead a strong group, while the following two draft classes are expected to be weaker.
“It’s a little bit of a perfect storm this season,” Silver said. “You have four players in particular, maybe five, who are true game changers.”
The league has already increased enforcement measures.
The Utah Jazz were fined $500,000 for holding out key players late in games, and the Indiana Pacers were fined $100,000 for using a depleted rotation.
Adam Silver Pledges Substantial Draft Lottery Changes To Combat Tanking https://t.co/ZXy7ibpSmK
— RealGM (@RealGM) March 6, 2026
