NBA Fans, You’re Being Played – The Draft Scam Exposed!
Should the NBA get rid of the draft? Short answer: no. Long answer: the current system needs a serious overhaul. The draft, as it stands, rewards losing—and that incentive structure has broken competition, encouraged tanking, and left honest, trying teams stranded in the middle.
Table of Contents
- The problem in plain terms
- Why getting rid of the draft is the wrong move
- Principles any reform should follow
- Concrete solutions that would work better than elimination
- How to hold teams accountable without killing competition
- Final thoughts: innovate, don’t eliminate
The problem in plain terms
The draft is intended to promote parity: give weaker teams a chance to improve. But when the worst record equals the best draft pick, the system ends up rewarding failure. Teams can, and some do, rationally choose to lose games because the payoff—higher draft odds or a top prospect—outweighs short-term competitiveness.
This creates several toxic outcomes:
- Tanking as strategy: Losing becomes a financial and competitive decision rather than an accident.
- Mediocre teams stuck in limbo: Teams that try but lack resources or cleverness get neither wins nor high picks.
- Fan apathy and uneven markets: Cities and fanbases suffer when ownership treats teams as profit centers rather than competitive franchises.
Why getting rid of the draft is the wrong move
Eliminating the draft entirely sounds appealing if your goal is to stop tanking. But removing the draft removes a major route for rebuilding, especially for small-market teams. The draft is a core mechanism for parity—taken away, the league risks becoming pay-to-win and cementing dynasties that never turn over.
Instead of scrapping the draft, the goal should be to redesign it so it rewards effort and constructive rebuilding, not intentional losing.
Reward the team that tries.
Principles any reform should follow
- Do not reward deliberate failure. The system should reduce the incentive to tank and increase the cost of losing intentionally.
- Reward documented effort and progress. Teams that invest in player development, analytics, coaching, and community engagement should be recognized.
- Protect genuine bad luck cases. Injuries, unforeseen ownership problems, and other legitimate setbacks deserve compassion and support.
- Keep parity accessible for small markets. Any change must ensure non–large-market teams retain pathways to compete.
Concrete solutions that would work better than elimination
Here are practical, implementable ideas that preserve parity while disincentivizing intentional losing.
1. A performance-plus-effort lottery
Tie lottery odds partly to performance metrics and partly to an “effort score.” The effort score can include:
- Investment in player development programs and coaching staff
- Minutes given to young players and draft assets used on player development
- Front-office investment in scouting and analytics
- Transparent indicators of roster competitiveness (injury-adjusted expectations versus actual performance)
Teams with higher effort scores would gain small boosts in lottery odds, while teams showing signs of deliberate tanking would be penalized.
2. Anti-tanking penalties
Introduce clear penalties for teams found to be tanking: fines, loss of draft position, or limits on future pick flexibility. Having a transparent review process and objective markers—like benching healthy top players for no tactical reason, sudden payroll reductions mid-season aimed at maximizing picks, or other quantifiable tactics—would make enforcement feasible.
3. Draft pick auctions or points system
Create a marketplace where teams can bid for draft positions using a finite resource such as “draft points” earned through positive actions (development milestones, overperforming relative to payroll, etc.). This shifts value from simply being last to demonstrating organizational investment and creativity.
4. Reward over-achievement relative to context
Instead of only punishing losing, reward teams that beat expectations. If a low-payroll team or a squad hampered by injuries exceeds advanced-metric expectations, grant them improved draft positioning. That flips incentives toward smart management.
5. Conditional protections for genuine hardship
Allow for protected mechanisms that help teams suffering legitimate crises (major injuries, ownership upheaval) without creating loopholes for manipulation. Independent audits and shorter safeguard windows can prevent abuse.
How to hold teams accountable without killing competition
Holding a team accountable means measuring effort, transparency, and outcomes. Use a mix of data and governance:
- Data transparency: Require teams to report minutes for rookies, development investments, and other public metrics.
- Independent oversight: A league committee can review suspicious behavior with standard criteria and fast-track decisions.
- Graduated penalties: Make penalties proportional and public so owners know the risk of gaming the system.
Final thoughts: innovate, don’t eliminate
Getting rid of the draft is a fool’s errand. It would throw out a mechanism that—when properly fixed—still offers fairness and access across markets. The real task is to innovate the draft so it stops rewarding mediocrity and intentional losing and instead rewards effort, creativity, and genuine rebuilding.
If the NBA truly prides itself on innovation, this is the perfect place to lead. Design a draft that celebrates the teams that fight, grow, and invest—not the ones that play the system for short-term gain. Reward those who try. Penalize deliberate failure. That change would make the sport better for fans, players, and honest franchises.
Vince Douglas Gregory is the ‘petulant puppet master’ of a sports media landscape addicted to scripted rage and performance art. As the architect of VDG Sports, he bypasses the corporate talking heads to expose the unfiltered truth behind the narratives.
An unstable thinker and astute scholar, Vince thrives on dismantling the mediocre click-bait addicts who trade reality for engagement. If you want boring stats, go elsewhere. If you want the raw reality of the game, you’re in the right place. Consider yourself warned.