NBA Approves New '3-2-1' Draft Lottery System

[RandySF]

The NBA officially has a new draft lottery system.

On Thursday, the league’s owners approved the “3-2-1” system that will begin with the 2027 draft. Owners voted 29–1 in favor of the new approach, ESPN reported, with Grizzlies owner Robert Pera being the lone dissenter. The new approach further flattens the lottery odds in an attempt to curb tanking after commissioner Adam Silver said this season’s actions went too far.

“Are we seeing behavior that is worse this year than we’ve seen in recent memory?” Silver said in February. “Yes, is my view.”

The new system expands the lottery from 14 to 16 teams, giving two more franchises the chance to land the No. 1 pick each offseason. It also adds a “relegation zone” that would give the three bottom teams record-wise worse lottery odds than the teams directly above them in the standings.



https://frontofficesports.com/nba-approves-3-2-1-draft-lottery-system/?utm_source=TWITTER&utm_medium=Article&utm_campaign=Editorial

[Bluetus]

1. This is a ridiculous system.

The most equitable system would be one of fixed picks regardless of record, so that every team knows exactly which picks they will have for every future year. You simply rotate them. Every team gets one #1 pick every 30 years, one #30 pick every 30 years and likewise for all the other slots. That would completely eliminate all the incentives for tanking, and also not reward a mid-pack team with a #1 pick for no good reason.

Many people suspect the ping-pong system is rigged. This would eliminate all of that.

And if you want to give the weaker teams a parity boost, then give all the non-playoff teams an extra pick between the first and second rounds. Nobody is going to tank for the 37th pick, but some of those 31-40 picks will end up being star players. Just look at

Nikola Jokic
Manu Ginóbili
Draymond Green
Marc Gasol
Gilbert Arenas
Fred VanVleet

[LakeVermilion]

2. I have a novel idea that no one has considered...

The teams that don't make the playoffs shall be in the lottery. The lottery order should be based on attendance. The highest attendance should get the first pick. Those fans have invested and deserve a high draft pick.

The draft should then follow the season attendance in order from 2 - 16.

If the teams aren't competitive, fans won't show up. If you are the lowest team in attendance, lower the prices, and spend some money on free agents. Create a team that people want to see.

[Morbius]

3. I see a problem with this suggestion.

There are some cities where fans won't show up even if the team is any good. Building a fan base isn't necessarily easy. The NBA is very unlikely to endanger their TV money and I suspect this plan might do that, because it encourages teams to move to new cities ASAP if attendance is poor.

I think each team which misses the playoffs gets one ball and then they draw the first three picks. That way there is no effective difference between just missing the playoffs and having the worst record. No doubt this solution is also too simple to work, but it's all I've got.