NBA Commissioner Adam Silver On Victor Wembanyama & Tanking Issue
It’s hardly surprising that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver may be concentrating on a strategy to combat tanking this season, with French wonder Victor Wembanyama standing by as a top 2023 draft possibility.
Silver recently discussed the plan with Phoenix Suns staff, calling it a “serious issue” that has spurred “hundreds” of meetings, according to a report from ESPN’s Baxter Holmes. The conversation, apparently started by a Suns staffer, is likely to go on as the league chases Wembanyama, a 7-foot-3 “franchise-changing, generational prospect,” according to Yahoo Sports.
The NBA and Adam Silver have considered “relegation” as a punishment for tanking teams, where two of the worst NBA teams would be demoted to the G-League and two of the best G-League teams would be put in the NBA.
(via @Baxter, https://t.co/H4DDgFZutw) pic.twitter.com/Jo0yc3iHE5
— . (@WBallCentral) October 22, 2022
Adam Silver Taking Steps On Tanking Issue
As the buzz around Victor Wembanyama intensifies, NBA commissioner Adam Silver has sent a “teams on notice” and stated that the league would be “paying particular attention” to the issue of tanking. In a recent conversation with Phoenix Suns employees, Silver referred to the 7-foot-4 French star as a “once-in-a-generation player” and predicted that he will be selected first overall in the 2023 draft.
Although it is not anticipated that The Suns will be one of the teams fighting in the “Tankathon” for Wembanyama, Wembanyama was nonetheless brought up.
REPORT: Adam Silver says the NBA has thought about ‘relegation’ as a potential solution to tanking.
(via ESPN, https://t.co/1YOxhrtwkv) pic.twitter.com/M5RZ0TViPR
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) October 22, 2022
“This year, we’re going to pay close attention to the problem.”
Silver continued by stating that the idea of relegation was considered a means of encouraging the weaker teams to compete, but it was eventually rejected.
Silver informed staff that such a proposal would see teams demoted to the G League and the best players from the G League take their position, saying, “It would completely destabilise our business model.”
NEWS: NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, in recent comments to Phoenix Suns employees, addressed tanking concerns while noting that he understands why some teams would do it when a “once-in-a-generation player” is about to enter the league, sources tell ESPN https://t.co/o6uaKlITYN
— Baxter Holmes (@Baxter) October 22, 2022
“Even if you took two teams up from the G League, they wouldn’t be equipped to compete in the NBA.”
“It’s [tanking] something we have to watch for. A draft is, in principle, a good system. But I get it, especially when there is a sense that a once-in-a-generation player is coming along like we have this year.”
“Teams are smarter, they are creative, and they respond — we move, they move — so we’re always looking to see whether there’s yet a better system.”
Adam Silver avisou: se a NBA descobrir que estão tankando de propósito, haverá medidas punitivas!
Adam diz que pensou no modelo:
– Os 2 piores times da NBA são rebaixados para a G-League.
A ideia só não andou devido à falta de estrutura dos times da G-League.
🗞- @espn pic.twitter.com/5YkWIwR6D9
— Coast to Coast Brasil | NBA (@brasilcoast2) October 22, 2022
The NBA has already made efforts to stop players from tanking. After 2018, the odds of winning the draft lottery were flattened, giving the three teams with the worst regular-season records an identical 14 per cent chance of doing so. Prior to it, the odds of winning the lottery were 25% for the top seed, 19.9% for the second seed, and 15.6 per cent for the third seed.
The league’s financial health will constantly be threatened by a lack of a competitive product. As Silver is aware that franchises will continue to plot, we can anticipate some action.
FOR MORE NBA UPDATES-
Kevin Durant Is Sick Of Treatment Russell Westbrook Is Receiving!
