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NBA approves new draft lottery system to combat tanking: What it means

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NBA approves new draft lottery system to combat tanking: What it means

The NBA voted to approve a new draft lottery system designed to eliminate incentives for teams to tank during the regular season, the league announced on Thursday, May 28.

The “3-2-1 Lottery” approved by the NBA expands the lottery from 14 to 16 teams and flattens odds for teams that don’t make the NBA playoffs or play-in tournament.  The new system takes effect beginning with the 2027 NBA Draft.

The NBA said in its announcement that the league office has met with key stakeholders to discuss current competitive incentives and solicit ideas aimed at discouraging tanking since October. NBA commissioner Adam Silver said combating tanking was a priority for the league at the 2026 NBA All-Star Game in February.

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Under the new system, which goes into effect for the 2027 NBA Draft, the teams with the three worst records will be “draft relegated” and have worse lottery odds to receive a top pick compared to other teams that did not qualify for the play-in tournament. Each of the “draft relegated” teams can pick no worse than No. 12 in the draft order.

No team will be permitted to select No. 1 overall in consecutive years, nor can a team receive a top-five pick in three straight drafts. The restrictions apply only to each team’s own pick, regardless of whether the pick was retained by the team via trade or traded to another team.

It means for the 2027 NBA Draft, the Memphis Grizzlies will not be allowed to select within the top five using the 2027 first-round pick they obtained from the Utah Jazz in a trade deadline deal centered around Jaren Jackson Jr. The Jazz picked within the top five in each of the past two drafts and therefore aren’t eligible to pick within the top-five again.

The Grizzlies were the only team to vote against the NBA’s new 3-2-1 lottery system, according to multiple reports.

The NBA also announced it will have additional disciplinary authority to address tanking as a result of the new system, including “the ability to reduce teams’ lottery odds, modify teams’ draft positions and impose significant fines on offending teams.”

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA approves new ‘3-2-1’ draft lottery to combat tanking problem

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