According to sources who were present, Adam Silver addressed possible solutions for tanking while noting that he understands why teams would do it when a once-in-a- generation player is about to enter the league.
During a question-and-answer session in the Suns' arena this week, Silver apologized on behalf of the league office to a large group of Suns employees, calling it a serious issue that has sparked hundreds of meetings.
One employee asked Silver about tanking, a topic that is expected to dominate the league conversation with Victor Wembanyama being projected to be the No. 1 pick.
Teams were put on notice by Silver. This year, we're going to pay particular attention to it.
According to Silver, the league has considered the idea of dropping the worst performing teams in order to make them compete better. The commissioner said that the NBA would be affected by the change.
The best team from the G League would be promoted to the NBA while the worst team would be demoted.
The business model would be disrupted by it. Even if you brought two teams up from the G League, they wouldn't be able to compete in the NBA.
The NBA reduced the odds of winning the lottery in order to reduce tanking. The team with the worst record had a 25% chance, the second worst team had a 19.9% chance and the third worst team had a 15.6% chance.
Silver told employees that tanking is still a problem.
It's something we have to keep an eye on. The draft is a good system. I understand when there is a sense that a once-in-a- generation player is coming along. Sources present said that Silver didn't mention Wembanyama, but that the league will adjust as needed.
"Teams are smarter, they are creative, and they respond, so we're always looking to see if there's yet a better system," Silver told employees.
The Suns employees were told by Silver that the league will look at more closely once it's through its upcoming television rights negotiations. The NBA's current TV rights package is set to end after the 25th season.
"In order to evaluate any teams coming in, we need to know where we stand from a media standpoint," Silver told employees.
Adding more teams would make the product weaker.
The goal is to have 30 competitive teams, not 20, so think we do pay attention to the dilution factor, he said.
Silver said that the league is doing well and that there is no shortage of good candidates for new teams in new cities. If the NBA expands, Las Vegas and Seattle are likely candidates.
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