The Golden State Warriors have been one of the NBA's most consistent contenders in recent years, but they've had to navigate a different landscape this season with injuries sidelining key players. As other teams around the league openly embrace the tanking strategy to improve their draft position, Warriors veteran Draymond Green has a bold proposal to address the issue.
Flattening the Draft Lottery Odds
In an episode of "The Draymond Green Show", the Warriors' outspoken forward shared his thoughts on the NBA's tanking problem and the potential solutions. Green believes the league should consider "flattening the odds for all lottery teams" as the most effective way to discourage teams from purposefully losing games.
"I think that one is probably the most effective," Green said. "Like all of these other ones are like punishments. I think this one is the best fix because all these other ones are flawed a bit, right? Like, some teams are just going to suck, and if you do really just suck, there's no path to winning."
Addressing the Root of the Issue
Green's proposal gets to the heart of the tanking problem - the current draft lottery system incentivizes losing by rewarding the teams with the worst records with the best odds of landing a top pick. By making the odds more even across the board, Green believes it would remove the financial and competitive incentive for teams to tank.
As NBA Commissioner Adam Silver acknowledged, the league's current measures to curb tanking "are not working." Silver has indicated that the league is exploring various rule changes, including protecting draft picks only for the top-4 or top-14 selections, to address the issue.
The Warriors' Playoff Push
While the tanking debate rages on, the Warriors remain focused on making a playoff push despite the injury setbacks. As our previous coverage explored, Golden State is determined to give themselves a chance at another championship run, even if the odds seem long at the moment.
With Steph Curry and Kristaps Porzingis potentially returning after the All-Star break, the Warriors are hoping to recapture their championship form and show why their culture of winning is so difficult to replicate. In the meantime, Draymond Green is using his platform to advocate for meaningful changes to address the NBA's tanking problem.