Tanking in the NBN.. A Concern? I Think Not...
Aug 31, 2015 2:30:49 GMT
AuldDawg, yourkers15, and 1 more like this
Post by naterade on Aug 31, 2015 2:30:49 GMT
Tanking is legal. Is it something everyone approves of? Absolutely not. This league is unique, in the way that it is clearly written in the rules that tanking is legal, as long as you do it the right way. Each GM (except new comers/ D12) has the right to trade away talent in exchange for lesser talent, in order to improve the quality of their picks, free up cap space, and jump-start a rebuilding project. The only way any GM could break the tanking rules, would be to keep talent stashed on their roster and simply bench them in favor of terrible players. Essentially though, anything goes, as long as you aren’t hoarding talent and giving your good players a “healthy scratch”.
Should we be concerned about what this could do to a league? Could this cause an extremely top-heavy league with a few super teams running the show every year, or will things balance out over time? I don’t think there should be any cause for alarm though. I have been raised on a “Hakuna Mattata” mindset about life, so it doesn’t bother me. I tend to feel that tanking is a healthy purge for the league, as long as its not always the same teams doing it every season.
This season is a good example of the awkward split that tanking can cause. With about 5 true contenders, a clearly separated middle class, and then the lottery bound teams, there are absolutely different classes of power. In my mind, there is a 0% chance that anyone outside of the Hawks, 76ers, Grizzlies, Warriors, or Sonics win the championship this season. These are the teams that have done a great job in the buyers market and pillaging the lottery bound teams for all of their talent at a supreme discount. That is still a decent talent spread though, and not unlike the real NBA where the top tier is very heavily favored in the power rankings, with little chance of an upset.
It should be argued that tanking proves to be a necessary evil for those teams stuck in the middle with no chance of climbing the ranks with their roster makeup. Every team eventually reaches a point where they have peaked in the league and realize they simply don’t have quite enough to make the push for a championship. Some teams, like how the Sonics and Spurs have historically handled things, will keep their core together, and just reload the complementary pieces each offseason, and come back ready to go. Other teams, like the 76ers and T-Wolves, who decide they need an extreme makeover, and purge their team for lottery picks and try to rebuild through the draft and acquire assets for trade. The 76ers may be the ultimate case for the tanking cause, as they went through a speedy rebuild and ended up winning the championship shortly after. That is literally the dream.
I support tanking to a degree. I would prefer not to openly label it as such, but rather consider it a “rebuilding” phase, although the principle remains the same. Rebuilding, in my opinion, should be as brief as possible, with the end goal being a playoff birth and an eventual shot at a title. The exciting part is that the teams at the top hold all of the primetime talent, while the teams at the bottom are collecting youth, preparing to develop these young studs and eventually overthrow the upper class in 3-5 seasons. Once the likes of Duncan, Glenn Robinson, Webber, and Penny Hardaway retire, it will clear space for the Kevin Durant, Lebron James, and Josh Childress type players to take over. Those are the opportunities that “tanking" creates, as the balance of power should eventually flip-flop and give new teams a chance at winning it all. This league is amazing. Lets stay the course and keep it interesting!
But remember… no cheating!
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