THE LOTTERY Teams #25 thru #30 (6 worst teams in the league) take part in a televised lottery. No weights added, all six teams have 16.6% odds. Top-2 picks are rewarded. Other four teams get the #4, #5, #6 and #8 picks, going by order of worst record. Teams that receive the #1 pick are ineligible to win the lottery for another 4 years. In cases of recent lottery winners in the bottom-6, lottery is held as planned. If recent winner (past 4 years) wins again, they are pushed down to #2, while drawing for #1 pick is held again. What this does: - Gets rid of stupid "behind the curtain" lottery, and the conspiracy theories attached to it. - Helps out the worst teams without them trying to out-suck each other at the rate they currently do due to the equal weighting (teams would still try and get in that "bottom-6", but this wouldn't be as bad as it currently is). - The 6th worst team, if they don't get in the top-2, gets the 8th pick (66.7% chance), and that might discourage some on the cusp to tank to get in, and they might instead try their hand at the consolation tourney (read on). THE PLAYOFFS Nix the divisions. Teams #1 thru #6 in each conference make the playoffs. The top 2 seeds in each conference get a bye to rest and heal, and the "rust issue" in the NFL wouldn't be as much of a problem here due to the series format. The first round would feature the 3/6 and 4/5 match-ups in quick 5 game series. The later series would be 7 games, as usual. What this does: - Stops the bad 36-win teams from making the playoffs (usually...this year in the East might be a rare exception) - Gets rid of the pointless divisions and the ranking system that goes along with it. - Helps the top teams (SAS with Duncan, MIA with Wade etc) get healthy, giving them more incentive to "keep playing" at the end of the regular season. THE CONSOLATION Teams #13 thru #24 take part in a single-elimination tourney, which airs over the same ~10 day period that the 3/6 and 4/5 series are taking place. The winner gets rewarded the #3 pick, and the first runner up is rewarded the the #7 pick. Games all take place in one or two locations (hosted by the top 2 teams?), keeping to the March Madness-style. Also, winning the Consolation Tourney overrides the trading of any pick (every traded pick is protected in the case of winning the consolation tourney). The pick gets moved to next year. This gives bad teams that stupidly traded away picks (NYK) something to play for. What this does: - This helps address the "mediocrity treadmill" suffered by the solid teams that end up just out of the playoffs, and gives them something to look forward to/play for. And unlike other ideas which would award the consolation tourney winner the #1 pick (way too much, as already solid teams would steal the Anthony Davis types), this gives them a valuable reward worth playing for, without going completely overboard. - Gives the NBA an exciting single-elimination style playoff of CBB without putting too much on the line. - The "intrigue" of this + the 3/6 and 4/5 matchups keeps the fan interest intact despite having the best teams sit for a 10 day period. OTHER NOTES - Realignment and contracting ~2 teams may also be considered, as even with the new format, the East's lack of quality would still be evident.
Here's a glimpse on how it would look this year, based on Hollinger's projected standings (though I'm switching Houston and Phoenix because I can't stomach that possibility): Lottery Philadelphia: 16.6% at #1; 66.7% at #4 Milwaukee: 16.6% at #1; Utah: 16.6% at #1 Orlando: 16.6% at #1 Sacramento: 16.6% at #1 Brooklyn: 16.6% at #1; 66.7% at #8 Consolation 1st Round #8 LAL/#9 CHI (in Phoenix, Day 1) #5 NOP/#12 CLE (in Phoenix, Day 1) - #6 CHA/#10 MEM (in Minnesota, Day 2) #7 BOS/#11 NYK (in Minnesota, Day 2) 2nd Round #1 PHO/winner of #8/#9 (in Phoenix, Day 3) #4 DEN/winner of #5/#12 (in Phoenix, Day 3) - #3 DAL/winner of #6/#10 (in Minnesota, Day 4) #2 MIN/winner of #7/#11 (in Minnesota, Day 4) Semifinals Semifinal 1 (in Phoenix, Day 6) Semifinal 2 (in Minnesota, Day 6) Finals Final (in Phoenix, Day 8) - Winner gets #3 pick; Loser gets #7 pick Playoffs East #6 DET @ #3 ATL (games on Days 2, 4, 7, 9*, 11*) #5 WAS @ #4 TOR (games on Days 3, 5, 8, 10*, 12*) - XXX @ #1 IND XXX @ #2 MIA West #6 GSW @ #3 POR (games on Days 3, 5, 8, 10*, 12*) #5 HOU @ #4 LAC (games on Days 2, 4, 7, 9*, 11*) - XXX @ #1 OKC XXX @ #2 SAS
8 teams from each conference is too much. you're not supposed to reward more than half of the teams in the league a playoff spot.