標籤: antitanking

The topic of NBA teams tanking has been a constant topic of discussion for the past few weeks, but it was uncertain whether the league would do anything about it. According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, it looks like NBA commissioner Adam Silver has stepped in, and he plans to set some new rules for next season regarding anti-tanking.

“Commissioner Adam Silver informed the league’s 30 general managers on Thursday that the NBA is planning to make changes to the anti-tanking rule for next season, sources told ESPN. Stakeholders have stepped up conversations about how to deal with tanking,” Charania, formerly of the X, wrote on Twitter.

During the meeting, several topics were discussed on ways to curb tanking, including first-round picks being protected only in the top-4 or top-14+, lottery chances being frozen at the trade deadline or at a later date, a team no longer being allowed to pick a top-4 pick in consecutive years and/or after consecutive bottom-3 finishes, teams not being able to pick a top-4 the following year after making the conference finals, two years The lottery has been expanded to include all play-in teams, and the odds have been leveled for everyone. All Lottery Teams.

Over the past few weeks, teams like the Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers were fined. The Jazz were fined after sitting Jaren Jackson Jr. and Lauri Markkanen in the fourth quarter of two games, and the Pacers were fined after sitting Pascal Siakam in their game against the Utah Jazz after the league learned he could play.

Benedict Mathurin, Andrew Nembhard and TJ McConnell were also fit to play in the game but sat out.

There have been other situations throughout the league where some people suspected some type of tanking was taking place. Anthony Davis will likely miss the remainder of the season for the Washington Wizards, and Trae Young will likely be on that list.

Meanwhile, for the Sacramento Kings, both Zach LaVine and Domantas Sabonis have been shut down for the remainder of the season.

After numerous complaints that teams were clearly lagging over the past few weeks, the NBA responded by issuing fines to the Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers. An NBA insider believes these punishments were handed down in response to commissioner Adam Silver receiving pressure from gambling companies.

Interest in NBA gambling has grown rapidly over the years, with thousands of dollars wagered on each game. However, if teams are not disclosing unconventional game plans to betting companies, it is difficult for betting sites to set accurate lines, which could create disarray in the industry, NBA insider Ben Golliver speculated.

“I think an important aspect of it with Utah is – if you’re not playing with guys in the fourth quarter, how many plays is that affecting? Golliver said on the ‘Greatest of All Talk’ podcast. “We know how much the NBA has gotten away with with gambling. Over-unders are at stake, players’ supports are at stake. If coaches are just acting reluctantly, not putting people through full games, and they’re not telling people in advance that they plan to do that, you’re going to have a lot of angry gamblers and a lot of angry gambling companies.”

Adam Silver is reportedly cracking down on late-game slumps due to the NBA’s “serious ties” to gambling. @bengolliver

“We know how deeply the NBA has become intertwined with gambling… If coaches are intentionally not playing people throughout the game and they are not letting people play… pic.twitter.com/QEQN7NV96R

– The NBA Base (@TheNBABAse) 17 February 2026

The NBA has been actively combating tanking for years, but the issue has never been as severe as it was for the Jazz and Pacers at the end of the 2025-2026 season. Utah received heavy criticism for sitting star players Lauri Markkanen, Jaren Jackson Jr. and Jusuf Nurkic for the entire fourth quarter at the end of several games before being fined.

As the sports betting industry continues to grow, all professional leagues are working to maintain strong relationships with gambling companies. The NBA has already dealt with several high-profile gambling scandals over the past three years and will do everything possible to avoid going down that path again.