No Luck of the Irish in Boston...conspiracy???

Boston had about a 37% chance to take home one of the top two picks this year in the Draft.  Only Memphis had a better shot then they did and they landed the number four pick.  This is absolutely crazy!!!  I understand that it is a draft, but everytime Boston enters a draft they have never received the number one pick despite of their chances (which are supposedly good).  I personally think that David Stern and his flunkies are in the backroom making up the draft as they go along.  With Portland cleaning up its' former bad image (the Jailblazers) and Seattle potentially moving to a different city, talents like Oden and Durant will pack any arena ultimately making the bad image and any idea of moving obsolete.

But what about Boston...I guess Stern figured we already collected too many trophies in the past and didn't need anymore (16)...and aren't drafts supposed to be conducted live so nobody could make ranting blogs such as this???

Make you wonder...I know I am...here's to another dark ten years in tha Bean...Cheers!!!

They had a 37% chance to get something and didn't get it. Dude that makes complete sense.

Your conspiracy theory on the other hand, not making any sense.  Your disappointment does not make up for your lack of any proof.  Is it my imagination or do I hear a lot more crazy NBA conspiracy theories than any other sport?

remember they had like 60% to not get the top two picks. Meaning the odds were against them from the start. The odds were against everyone for noone had a 50% chance. Just be happy. They could still get one of these: Brandon Wright, Jokim Noah, AC Law, Al Hartford and Ji and remember D-Wade was a 5th pick (after James,milic, Anothny and Bosh). Just becuase you do not get Oden or Durant does not mean you can not get a great talent. John Stockton was like 15 along with Malone, Kobe was also like 10, and Brandon Roy (RTY) was 5th, and Stadamarie was 8th. Daron Williams was like on the teens. IF you guys have a good scout you will be fine.

Heck Kings got Kevin Martin who was runner up for Most improved at 22 (average 20 ppg this season). AC law could be a D Wade who knows and Brandon wright could be a Garnet while Jokim Noah could be a a all star some day. He was suppose to be #1 last year.

I'm sick of David Stern, but there's no conspiracy.. if the Celtics got the top pick people would say the same thing because it would have been suspiciously great for the league. Though I can't understand why it's done behind closed doors, that doesn't serve any purpose at all.

The scaling in the current system however does suck - it should really be weighted more heavily towards the worst teams, and perhaps only include the bottom 8 teams or so in the lottery. It may be exciting theatre this way but the odds just aren't right when the last place team has only a 25% chance to actually get the pick they deserve, and historically it's happened at a much lower percentage than that. Doesn't seem fair to me.

I appreciate the names you're throwing out there chansaet, but there's no denying that Oden and Durant are as close to can't miss, franchise changing prospects as it gets, they are 1a and 1b and it's not easy to be happy when the worst possible case scenario plays out instead.

edit: Jerry West agrees, but really who didn't expect that. He's too smart a guy not to ;) 

remember they had like 60% to not get the top two picks. Meaning the odds were against them from the start. The odds were against everyone for noone had a 50% chance. Just be happy. They could still get one of these: Brandon Wright, Jokim Noah, AC Law, Al Hartford and Ji and remember D-Wade was a 5th pick (after James,milic, Anothny and Bosh). Just becuase you do not get Oden or Durant does not mean you can not get a great talent. John Stockton was like 15 along with Malone, Kobe was also like 10, and Brandon Roy (RTY) was 5th, and Stadamarie was 8th. Daron Williams was like on the teens. IF you guys have a good scout you will be fine.

Heck Kings got Kevin Martin who was runner up for Most improved at 22 (average 20 ppg this season). AC law could be a D Wade who knows and Brandon wright could be a Garnet while Jokim Noah could be a a all star some day. He was suppose to be #1 last year.

chansaet

Yea...it's understandable that they are going to get some talent out of this draft pool, but what worries me given the past track record is that even when we acquire talent, they usually don't bloom until they leave Boston.  D Wade is good no doubt, but I'd take Bron Bron and his non-shooting free-throws behind to start a franchise...and did you say Jokim Noah???  I think he's garbage...good hustler, but that's it...for some reason I see him in Celtic Green!!!  NOOOOOOOOOOOO....

All I know is that it is called the LOTTERY for a reason! They may have had a high chance of getting a top 3 pick but when ping pongs in an air chamber are involved... anything can happen. Sure Portland only had a 5.8% chance of getting the #1 pick but all they needed were the right ping pong balls to get sucked up. It's pure luck even if you do have a higher chance. It's obvious Boston used it's "luck" with the World Series run... (not saying they didn't earn it, it's more of a joke than anything)nickdastick

A LOTTERY that was conducted behind closed doors.

As for the Red Sox winning...of course we deserved to win...it was a great come back by us and a big choke by the Yanks.  The actual series to "win" the World Series was a breeze...it was over after we beat the Yanks...and we're gonna do it again...same goes with the Pats...get on tha bandwagon baby!!!

You should be more concerned with Celtic management rather than NSA conspiracy. Just look at their past draft choices and who they passed up on and which players they traded. Remember Billups? You're a typical blame it on others kind of person for their team woes. Time to look in the mirror Celtic management---cause they're to blame for their mess.

[QUOTE="nickdastick"]All I know is that it is called the LOTTERY for a reason! They may have had a high chance of getting a top 3 pick but when ping pongs in an air chamber are involved... anything can happen. Sure Portland only had a 5.8% chance of getting the #1 pick but all they needed were the right ping pong balls to get sucked up. It's pure luck even if you do have a higher chance. It's obvious Boston used it's "luck" with the World Series run... (not saying they didn't earn it, it's more of a joke than anything)tryfe_lyn

A LOTTERY that was conducted behind closed doors.

As for the Red Sox winning...of course we deserved to win...it was a great come back by us and a big choke by the Yanks.  The actual series to "win" the World Series was a breeze...it was over after we beat the Yanks...and we're gonna do it again...same goes with the Pats...get on tha bandwagon baby!!!

I understand it was behind closed doors but a rep from each team was back there with them (not the ones on the podiums) as well as an analyst from ESPN!!! So unless the Celts rep as well as all the other reps were in on it... your conspiracy theory holds NO water... And like I said about the Boston World Series run, I was making a joke of them using up all the "luck" so now Boston Celts have none to go around. And I said World Series RUN which means I was talking about how they got there (coming from behind against the Yankees which made me a very happy guy since I hate the Yankees).

please this was a nightmare for nba marketing. the top 2 picks going to the pacific northwest? the league would want oden and durant going to big markets (such as boston) and going to the eastern conference in order to improve competitive balance.romocop33

Too true. This is almost a guaranteed beef up for two teams in the West when it's the East teams that need to be beefed up more! Obviously Durant and Oden don't mean automatic wins but they are the two best talents in the draft and are more sure things than the other guys (although all the time you see players drafted later stepping up so hope isn't lost quite yet). It will be interesting to see what happens.

They had a 37% chance to get something and didn't get it. Dude that makes complete sense.

Your conspiracy theory on the other hand, not making any sense. Your disappointment does not make up for your lack of any proof. Is it my imagination or do I hear a lot more crazy NBA conspiracy theories than any other sport?

duxup

Exactlly, and 63% of not getting the top two picks. And that's what happens. 

Greg Oden and Kevin Durant both going west coast actually hurts the leauge. I'm sure the league whould have prefered for one of them to go to Boston due to marketing reasons. If this was a conspiracy i'm sure they wouldnt have given Portland the first pick.

Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. mrvic87

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season? 

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. romocop33

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

[QUOTE="romocop33"]

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. duxup

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

that's why this year's lottery was so great. boston and memphis obviously wanted to lose to get the top picks, and they ended up going to teams that had better records because they didn't tank their seasons. 

[QUOTE="duxup"][QUOTE="romocop33"]

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. romocop33

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

that's why this year's lottery was so great. boston and memphis obviously wanted to lose to get the top picks, and they ended up going to teams that had better records because they didn't tank their seasons.

Yeah, because Boston and Memphis were obviously so talented they could just decide when to win or lose games on their own accord.

Anyone that watched the games would agree they were legitimately the two worst teams in the league last year, and the whole reason the draft works the way it does is to help the worst teams in the league.

Fact is if there is a lottery in place, teams at the bottom historically do what they need to do to secure their deserved pick - whether it's sitting stars and firing the coach (Memphis), playing young players too many minutes (Boston) or a rash of phantom injuries (Minnesota, Milwaukee, Seattle).

It happens every single season, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. "Fixing" it would require one ping pong ball for every team, and that's just terribly unfair and leads to even worse problems for the league.

Personally I don't see what the big problem is, it's not like the players on the court are actually throwing games (for the record, the Boston kids always played their heart out despite any questionable subsitution patterns from Doc). And it's only an issue in the last few weeks of every season. It's never gonna stop, just wait and see what goes down next year when the league's worst start seeing Rose and Mayo in their dreams.

that's why this year's lottery was so great. boston and memphis obviously wanted to lose to get the top picks, and they ended up going to teams that had better records because they didn't tank their seasons.

romocop33

Then they'll do it again next year...  Just like other teams do, Boston and Memphis are hardly the only two.  MN did it the last two years where they take players out because they're "hurt."  The current system doesn't prevent teams tanking games it at all.

[QUOTE="duxup"][QUOTE="romocop33"]

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. romocop33

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

that's why this year's lottery was so great. boston and memphis obviously wanted to lose to get the top picks, and they ended up going to teams that had better records because they didn't tank their seasons. 

I have to agree. The Celts and Grizz may not have been the best teams so they obviously are going to lose but I saw them play some VERY good games against VERY good teams and win!!! They totally tanked it at the end and I really don't mind that they didn't get rewarded. I understand they had the worst records in the NBA but it's not like their players are high schoolers! They can all play, that is why they are in the NBA the real problem is the management of the teams! The Grizz have a strong lineup they just didn't get the most out of it. How many people thought that the Jazz were going to be in the Western Conference Finals this year and have such a good record? Not many and yet they are playing great only a few years after losing arguably the best duo in NBA history!!! I mean, they grab Okur from Detroit (think if they still had that guy at C?!?! I would already give them the championship!), Boozer from Cle and pick up Deron Williams and Fischer and in just a few short years they are back in the West's elite! I am 100% sure Sloan is a HUGE reason as well as smart owners and upper management who listen to the coach and actually do what they need to do to field a winning team. I will say that Boston got uber screwed now since Roy Hibbert dropped out of the draft because I think he would have been a very good pick for them. But yeah, the Lottery is fair enough because tanking doesn't mean anything!

Last thing, Jamele Hill on ESPN said that Van Gundy (ex Houston) has this idea (my words describing what he said):

Give everyone one lottery ball and have at it. In other words, don't penalize teams for winning and make the draft as truly fair as it can be. It sounds like it might be a bit unfair for the teams that suck especially if a Pistons team or Spurs team grabbed the #1 pick but think of how entertaining it would be! Plus it would be truly fair since any team could get a higher pick even if they lost or won.

I think another idea would be to make the draft like the NFL but lower the cap of the team that gets the first pick and had the worst record as incentive to not tank. They would get the cap back in a set amount of time if they improved (in other words not get last in the league the next year). It's a bit harsh but it is a way to make sure that a team doesn't tank because if you cut a nice chunk from the cap, you would have a hard time either having a deep bench or having real good players.

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. romocop33

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season? 

I don't know about Memphis, but if you watched the Celtics play they competed until the very end.  The majority of the games they lost was only due to the fact that they didn't know how to finish games.  Running horrible plays drawn up by Doc Rivers didn't cut it...he sucks as a coach...he only has two plays that they kill over and over again...but I'm getting off point.  The young C's competed all season which is all you can ask from them...so I definetly don't know what everybody is saying about them "tanking" on purpose.  I watched those games and it was like taking a shot to the gut everytime they came up short.  Not getting the top pick is just icing on the cake!!!

[QUOTE="romocop33"][QUOTE="duxup"][QUOTE="romocop33"]

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. viberooni

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

that's why this year's lottery was so great. boston and memphis obviously wanted to lose to get the top picks, and they ended up going to teams that had better records because they didn't tank their seasons.

Yeah, because Boston and Memphis were obviously so talented they could just decide when to win or lose games on their own accord.

Anyone that watched the games would agree they were legitimately the two worst teams in the league last year, and the whole reason the draft works the way it does is to help the worst teams in the league.

Fact is if there is a lottery in place, teams at the bottom historically do what they need to do to secure their deserved pick - whether it's sitting stars and firing the coach (Memphis), playing young players too many minutes (Boston) or a rash of phantom injuries (Minnesota, Milwaukee, Seattle).

It happens every single season, sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. "Fixing" it would require one ping pong ball for every team, and that's just terribly unfair and leads to even worse problems for the league.

Personally I don't see what the big problem is, it's not like the players on the court are actually throwing games (for the record, the Boston kids always played their heart out despite any questionable subsitution patterns from Doc). And it's only an issue in the last few weeks of every season. It's never gonna stop, just wait and see what goes down next year when the league's worst start seeing Rose and Mayo in their dreams.

How about the phantom injuries for Paul Pierce...the Sixers had every excuse to tank after the Iverson trade but they didn't, maybe they didn't get a top three pick but they played down the stretch hard, with heart and dignity not like the Celtics. Maybe Ainge can start scouting OJ Mayo just like he did with Durant. 

There was a chance that it could have been rigged because we didn't really see the ping pong balls go in one by one. Anyway it was a weird lottery.rocket9434

Yeah but team officials of every team did, and you think if something, anything would had seem suspect the Celtics and Grizz official wouldn't had cry foul. 

[QUOTE="romocop33"]

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. duxup

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

Well I think they should have a bracket with the 5 worst team and weight higher in favor for the worst record but still no "worst record gets 1st pick". Maybe worst gets 51% chance at 1st pick and 2nd worst gets 30% at 1st pick. 

I'm a Celtics fan, but this is just ridiculous. It's called a lottery for a reason. They had a good chance, but nothing is ever guaranteed. And why would this conspiraqcy be against Boston? Boston's a HUGE sports market, why would they send the to biggest college superstars to tiny markets, while furthering the East's inferiority to the West?Rhazakna

They're sending Oden and Durant out to those markets to alleviate Portland of its former "Jailblazers" nickname and to attempt keep the Sonics in Seattle...

 You say you're a C's fan yet you rep the Yanks...are you in NY???  I guess I'd be a C's fan too...the Knicks are just as bad...the lesser of two evils???  Note to all former NBA stars...not everybody can hack it as a coach or GM (i.e. Ainge, Doc Rivers, Isaiah Thomas, Jordan)...just retire on top and become an anchor (i.e. Barkley, Greg Anthony, the Jet, Reggie Miller, etc.)...you'll catch less critizism that way...

 Damnit Ainge!!!

[QUOTE="Rhazakna"]I'm a Celtics fan, but this is just ridiculous. It's called a lottery for a reason. They had a good chance, but nothing is ever guaranteed. And why would this conspiraqcy be against Boston? Boston's a HUGE sports market, why would they send the to biggest college superstars to tiny markets, while furthering the East's inferiority to the West?tryfe_lyn

They're sending Oden and Durant out to those markets to alleviate Portland of its former "Jailblazers" nickname and to attempt keep the Sonics in Seattle...

You say you're a C's fan yet you rep the Yanks...are you in NY??? I guess I'd be a C's fan too...the Knicks are just as bad...the lesser of two evils??? Note to all former NBA stars...not everybody can hack it as a coach or GM (i.e. Ainge, Doc Rivers, Isaiah Thomas, Jordan)...just retire on top and become an anchor (i.e. Barkley, Greg Anthony, the Jet, Reggie Miller, etc.)...you'll catch less critizism that way...

Damnit Ainge!!!

Who cares about the Sonics leaving Seattle (besides people in Washington)? If they had widespread support, they wouldn't be leaving, there's no purpose in riggint a lottery keeping them in Seattle, and there's no guarantee that this will keep them in Seattle. As for the image of theBlazers, they haven't had that image for a while. People don't care about that image, or clearing it. They hacve a tiny fanbase, completely eclipsed by the CA teams fanbases.

Yes I am in NY, I've never been a Knicks fan though. My dad's a Knicks fan, can't root for the teams he roots for.

[QUOTE="duxup"][QUOTE="romocop33"]

[QUOTE="mrvic87"]Conspiracy or not, the Lottery stinks like a dirty diaper. I think they should just have a draft selection where the worst teams simply get the top picks based on their overall record, similar to the NFL. Master_Live

so boston and memphis get rewarded for tanking at the end of the season?

I don't see the current system stopping anyone from doing so.

Well I think they should have a bracket with the 5 worst team and weight higher in favor for the worst record but still no "worst record gets 1st pick". Maybe worst gets 51% chance at 1st pick and 2nd worst gets 30% at 1st pick.

I think that's a fine idea - still leaves room for some drama and chance but less of a mass exodus towards the bottom because of less teams involved/worse odds to jump.

And Paul Pierce's injuries were legit. Guy is a warrior and he wouldn't have been out unless he had to be. They did not rush him back by any stretch, but when he returned he was clearly not right - he had no lift and couldn't drive to the basket, he looked 10 years older. After draining his elbow twice and banging up his knee again they shut him down, which I had no problem with considering he's the franchise.

Now there was one game against Milwaukee near the end where West and Jefferson sat for no reason, we were all ashamed at that. But it ain't nothing like the Bucks forgetting Redd, Bell and Bogut for a few weeks while they plummeted from borderline playoff team to 3rd worst record.

Can you believe that like 6 years ago the Celts were two playoff wins away from going to the Championship against the Lakers?  Then they just traded everything they had away.

And then they got Walker back, which made Pierce happy and they won a TON of games... but then they traded him away AGAIN??  Well, they deserve it if you ask me.  Stupid moves. 

Ainge HAS TO GO!!!! He had ruined this team since he entered Boston. His trades are horrendous. Ricky Davis for Wally(injury prone) and worse 1st round pick for Telfair the overlooked/over-rated criminal. Telfair may have a chance to be good but he himself has to change. Gerald Green was a steal for the Celtics so its not like every draft is bad for them. I refused to go to a Celtics game since about the 3rd year of Ainge destroying the team. Why pay the for an over-priced seat and watch miillionaires and even worst losing millionaires. I dont support this kind of stuff. Im a Boston fan(celtics,red sox,pats) but tickets are crazy for any sport and the Celtics are the worst in the area. Fans need to do something about Ainge. Stop supporting and the organization will clearly see the answer.

Its still possible the Celtics can get someone under the radar and thats a good hope since most become this way. The Red Sox are so entertaining and are looking good so I'm happy. I just hope this NEVER happens to the Red Sox in the future as they are the most important thing in my Sporting interest. To bad I moved to Florida and cant see the Sox play as much  :*(  

37%.... That's roughly 1-in-3 odds.   Conspiracy my ass.RBerry82

37% is closer to 4-in-10 odds than 1-in-3 odds...but anyway 37% is still much better than 5.8%...is it not???  Yes...consiracy your ar$$...can somebody conspire his ar$$ for him...he wants one order of a conspired ar$$...ha ha ha...

they didnt get it. they just got to moved on and try next time.

remember they had like 60% to not get the top two picks. Meaning the odds were against them from the start. The odds were against everyone for noone had a 50% chance. Just be happy. They could still get one of these: Brandon Wright, Jokim Noah, AC Law, Al Hartford and Ji and remember D-Wade was a 5th pick (after James,milic, Anothny and Bosh). Just becuase you do not get Oden or Durant does not mean you can not get a great talent. John Stockton was like 15 along with Malone, Kobe was also like 10, and Brandon Roy (RTY) was 5th, and Stadamarie was 8th. Daron Williams was like on the teens. IF you guys have a good scout you will be fine.

Heck Kings got Kevin Martin who was runner up for Most improved at 22 (average 20 ppg this season). AC law could be a D Wade who knows and Brandon wright could be a Garnet while Jokim Noah could be a a all star some day. He was suppose to be #1 last year.

chansaet

also keep in mind, the Celtic's got Paul Pierce with the 10th pick of a draft.

sure we would have really wanted number one or two pick, but we are looking at one of the best NBA draft classes since Lebron and Melo. Im pumped to have a top 5 pick. We can still make out just fine. 

[QUOTE="chansaet"]

remember they had like 60% to not get the top two picks. Meaning the odds were against them from the start. The odds were against everyone for noone had a 50% chance. Just be happy. They could still get one of these: Brandon Wright, Jokim Noah, AC Law, Al Hartford and Ji and remember D-Wade was a 5th pick (after James,milic, Anothny and Bosh). Just becuase you do not get Oden or Durant does not mean you can not get a great talent. John Stockton was like 15 along with Malone, Kobe was also like 10, and Brandon Roy (RTY) was 5th, and Stadamarie was 8th. Daron Williams was like on the teens. IF you guys have a good scout you will be fine.

Heck Kings got Kevin Martin who was runner up for Most improved at 22 (average 20 ppg this season). AC law could be a D Wade who knows and Brandon wright could be a Garnet while Jokim Noah could be a a all star some day. He was suppose to be #1 last year.

MDDichard07

also keep in mind, the Celtic's got Paul Pierce with the 10th pick of a draft.

sure we would have really wanted number one or two pick, but we are looking at one of the best NBA draft classes since Lebron and Melo. Im pumped to have a top 5 pick. We can still make out just fine. 

I am well aware of the draft positions of all those people...Gilbert Arenas came from the second round of the draft...this is nothing new.  I am saying it would have been preferred to have obtained either the number one or number two picks.  All these guys are going to have some success to a degree...they're going to the NBA for crying out loud...I know that...but you don't get too many shots at receiving a franchise player...ya dig?  Paul Pierce is nice, but I wouldn't say he's a franchise player...he's the captain with alot of heart and does a good job in the clutch...but unfortunetly he's no Tim Duncan, Shaq, KG a big anchor down low that can envoke his will and change the outcome of the game.  Pierce has to work too hard for them to win sometimes...that's what led to his injuries this past season...he was over worked and broke down.  And Wright will not become the next KG (don't put those two in the same sentence) and Noah will not become an allstar...please...he has no game..he'll be another hustling Verajo...just because he would've went number one last year doesn't mean anything.  There have been plenty of number one busts...who knows Oden could be one too...but I highly doubt that...

[QUOTE="chansaet"]

also keep in mind, the Celtic's got Paul Pierce with the 10th pick of a draft.

 

sure we would have really wanted number one or two pick, but we are looking at one of the best NBA draft classes since Lebron and Melo. Im pumped to have a top 5 pick. We can still make out just fine. 

MDDichard07

Yeah...well I don't know...Ainge is funny...I think we'll either draft Noah or a foreign player we never heard of or Ainge will trade the pick to Portland to get back Raef Lafrenz and another second round pick...Ainge is SUSPECT!!!

I think that is an excellent idea to have a 4 team lottery or place all teams in brackets.  Some other poster suggested that every team gets one ball which means every team has an equal shot at going for #1.  How is that fair?  If that system was in place and say San Antonio or Detroit grabbed the #1 pick, do you honestly believe that coaches would put these new players into the lineup risking a drop in team chemistry?  That would not help the new prospects either.  Another scenario would be that these elite teams that would grab those top picks and have the negotiating power to ask for a ridiculous trades.  There are players in this years draft that are exciting and ready to make a huge impact for a struggling team like Boston or Memphis, not SA or Detroit.  I know that the top picks aren't guaranteed and that some NBA stars of today weren't top picks but it's a bigger reward than a risk since we know what some of these young players can do.

In regards to teams tanking (based on another poster's reply to my idea), that is just as ridiculous as the previous suggestion.  Why?  I can't picture in my mind a coach going out before each game (late in the season) telling his struggling team to don't work too hard and just tank a game.  Nor can I imagine a player who would tank and/or tell his teammates to just "take it easy" so we can lose and hope to get a top pick next year. 

If the NBA did the draft similar to how the NFL conducts their draft, a team like Boston would have had a #3 pick (I am not too sure if they were the 3rd worse) and even some negotiating power to perhaps get more experienced talent.   

If the NBA has to resort to saying the NBA lottery is to make sure teams are not tanking, then the league has bigger things to worry about. Players get paid millions, a platoon of coaches and execs manage the team, and media is everywhere. If teams are tanking, then they should be penalized severely. Not threatened w/ ping-pong balls. NBA wants money and drama at the expense of the truly helpless teams that really could use help. When you suck as bad as Boston, Memphis, and the rest of the teams that had no chance, they actually do suck. To include teams that just missed the playoffs or fell out of the race late is not fair to the worst teams. Have a 4 team lottery then. Or have seperate lotteries for different bracket of picks, 1-3, 4-6, 7-14.d12malu

Before Stern introduced this horrible "Lottery" into the system, the draft was based on record similar to the NFL.  The goal of the draft is to help turn a bad franchise around...not keep them down and that's exactly what's happening.  Good fortune for the Sonics, Portland and Atlanta...maybe they'll finally improve and teams who have been struggling in the northeast for years can get some much deserved help.

Before Stern introduced this horrible "Lottery" into the system, the draft was based on record similar to the NFL. The goal of the draft is to help turn a bad franchise around...not keep them down and that's exactly what's happening. Good fortune for the Sonics, Portland and Atlanta...maybe they'll finally improve and teams who have been struggling in the northeast for years can get some much deserved help.

tryfe_lyn

Before Stern introduced this horrible "Lottery" into the system team used to tank hard, not like todays behinds the scenes tanking, but outright tanking...so which you like better? 

Before Stern introduced this horrible "Lottery" into the system team used to tank hard, not like todays behinds the scenes tanking, but outright tanking...so which you like better? 

No they didn't...who tanked on purpose in the past and who benefitted from it???  Competitors compete and if they were given orders to "tank" to get a potentially good player in the draft their ego would come into effect.  Some teams are better and some need help...Memphis was in the playoffs not too long ago.  If Pau Pau didn't break his foot, they would've had a better season...we lost Pierce and then Tony then Wally (who sucks).  Those young guys worked hard and no true athlete is going to willingly lose...that just doesn't make any sense to me...

Excellent damn point Tryfe!!!!

What's funny is that I was about to say the same thing in my previous post but ommitted it so my post didn't appear to be too long.  When I mentioned that if players were to tank games or tell their teammates to just take it easy do you think they are thinking about an up and coming player for next year's team during the games they are allegedly tanking?  No they are not.  Their ego would be bruised and they wouldn't appreciate a rookie coming in to take their spotlight.  Which is good reason to conclude that no teams would tank games.  Why would an athlete want to even play for that organization if a coach or front office told them to go out there and play soft? 

 

Before Stern introduced this horrible "Lottery" into the system team used to tank hard, not like todays behinds the scenes tanking, but outright tanking...so which you like better? 

tryfe_lyn

No they didn't...who tanked on purpose in the past and who benefitted from it???  Competitors compete and if they were given orders to "tank" to get a potentially good player in the draft their ego would come into effect.  Some teams are better and some need help...Memphis was in the playoffs not too long ago.  If Pau Pau didn't break his foot, they would've had a better season...we lost Pierce and then Tony then Wally (who sucks).  Those young guys worked hard and no true athlete is going to willingly lose...that just doesn't make any sense to me...

Excellent damn point Tryfe!!!!

What's funny is that I was about to say the same thing in my previous post but ommitted it so my post didn't appear to be too long. When I mentioned that if players were to tank games or tell their teammates to just take it easy do you think they are thinking about an up and coming player for next year's team during the games they are allegedly tanking? No they are not. Their ego would be bruised and they wouldn't appreciate a rookie coming in to take their spotlight. Which is good reason to conclude that no teams would tank games. Why would an athlete want to even play for that organization if a coach or front office told them to go out there and play soft?

 

Hey guys I'm not saying that the GM and the coach go into a team meeting and say: "Guys ok we suck, play soft so we can get a higher pick", it would be foolish of them, players get paid a big deal of money for a service, that service is playing basketball and if ownership feels that a player isn't holding his end up the deal they could void their contracts.

 

Now, I supposed its more like the steroid scene in baseball during the 90's, everybody in the teams know: you take a jump shot instead driving to the hole and getting foul, maybe you don't dive for a loose ball, maybe you exaggerate an injury to miss more games...the bottom line you stop doing the little things. The players know that the coach and administrative party wouldn't mind slipping for a season if that meant getting one of two "One Every 15 Years Future Superstars" and getting to the playoffs for the next 15 seasons, higher revenue, more fans etc. And the saddest thing is that fans know it and go along with it(Ask Bill Simmons).