The idea of changing the way the Lottery Draft works in the NBA has been circulating for a while but now the idea has actually gained some ground and the NBA has submitted an official proposal to change the current lottery draft set-up we have. The NBA pushed a side the wheel idea for a system that gives every team in the NBA a chance at getting the number one draft pick. This seems like a plausible idea which will change how general managers and teams look at the lottery now. Here is what you need to know about the new lottery system being pushed:
1) Percentages
For all of you who are interested in statistics, this is where things get interesting. The current system is a system where the 14 worst records/teams in the league would get a chance at the first pick with the worst team getting a 25 percent chance at the prize of 1st overall. The probability of getting the 1st pick decreases from there on, as the second worst team gets a 19.9 percent chance and the 3rd worst team getting a 15.6 percent chance. From there on, the probability of getting the 1st pick declines dramatically as the 5 best teams in the lottery each have a 1.1 or worse percent chance.
New System: The new system involved something where the 4 worst teams get an EQUAL chance at the 1st pick( Around 11 percent each). The percentages slowly decrease as the next worst team has a 10 percent change with the best team having a whopping 2 percent chance at the first pick.
This change could come with some difficulty as it could cause some disruption and disagreement from teams using the “tanking system”. Anybody notice the tanking system teams like Philadelphia 76ers and Orlando Magic are using? Yeah, goodbye to that.
2) Structure & Selection
The structure and selection process for the lottery may change with the proposal as well. The current system involves drawing the top three selections.The rest of the lottery and draft goes in order of the record previously recorded by the team.
New System: This new system can implement the selection of the first 6 picks via the lottery ball. This makes things very interesting and also more exciting with the NBA draft lottery.
Overall, the NBA is thinking of moving ahead and definitely altering the draft in someway. Adam Silver is trying to shake things up quickly, and do it the right way. He’s been doing a good job so far, hopefully this can work out and make the league more entertaining. This changing of the lottery, comes with the prevention of the tanking system and to make the lottery just a little bit more exciting for the fans. Look for the new system to be implemented soon, maybe even this season coming up.
