NBA owners ratify anti-tanking lottery system

Field Level Media
29 May 2026, 01:49 GMT+10

(Photo credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images)

The NBA owners voted on Thursday to approve anti-tanking measures that will go into effect with the 2027 draft.

By a reported 29-1 margin, the NBA ratified a new lottery system that disincentivizes teams from trying to finish last in the league. Here's how the '3-2-1' plan endorsed by commissioner Adam Silver will work:

The teams that post the worst three records during the regular season each will receive two ping-pong balls for the lottery drawing. That's the same number that will be allocated to the four teams that finish ninth and 10th in the conference standings.

The two teams that lose the play-in tournament games between the No. 7 and 8 seeds will receive one ball.

The seven teams that neither take part in the play-in tournament nor finish among the bottom three will earn three lottery balls apiece.

All told, there will be 37 balls in the hopper. That gives the teams finishing 21st through 27th during the regular season an 8.1% chance to secure the No. 1 pick, while the bottom three only have a 5.4% chance.

Under the system being replaced, the bottom three teams enjoyed a 14% chance to win the top pick while the next seven teams' chances varied from 3 to 11.5%.

With the new system that will be in effect for at least the 2027-29 draft, no team can win the No. 1 pick in back-to-back lotteries and no team can collect a top-five pick in three straight lotteries.

--Field Level Media

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