NBA Tanking: The Epidemic From the Inside

Last March, Andersson Garcia, a little-known player from the G League, signed a 10-day contract with the Utah Jazz. The guard then played 25, 29, 43, 24, and 48 minutes over five consecutive games, with the Jazz being outscored by 69 points during his 169 minutes on the floor. A deliberate strategy to protect their top draft pick owed to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

“I’m really grateful, but at the same time, I was genuinely surprised,” Garcia told reporters. “I wasn’t expecting to be here right now.”

This tactic of signing and overplaying G League-level players is said to have been popularized by the Thunder a few years ago. “It’s a copycat league,” explains an executive from a team currently in tanking mode. “All the models and ideas are constantly evolving. That’s what happens when something works.”

We have NEVER seen this level of tanking bruh

Doug Christie literally instructed his players on the Kings TO FOUL SETH CURRY ON PURPOSE while up 101-100 in the 4th quarter

INSANE 😭💀 https://t.co/WV0XNKp4LL pic.twitter.com/38cIhRQp3C

— Hater Report (@HaterReport) April 8, 2026

A Winning but Controversial Strategy

The NBA tanking problem has evolved from a fringe phenomenon into a full-blown epidemic affecting the bottom third of the league. This season, at least eight teams are locked in a fierce battle to lose as many games as possible and improve their draft lottery odds.

“These teams are doing everything: sitting their players in the fourth quarter, deploying analytically poor starting lineups, drawing up plays designed for bad shots,” details a Western Conference GM. “The creativity is impressive and I don’t blame them. It’s the best strategy for improving.”

The examples keep piling up: the Memphis Grizzlies set an NBA record by using 25 different starters this season, while the Washington Wizards allowed Alex Sarr, their 2024 first-round pick, to commit six fouls in 22 minutes without taking him off the floor.

Commissioner Adam Silver has promised sweeping changes: “There’s an aspect of team building called a genuine rebuild. The problem today is that it has become almost impossible to distinguish between tanking and rebuilding. We are going to fix that. Period.”

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Human and Sporting Consequences

Coaches are also feeling the pressure. Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors makes no effort to hide his disgust: “I hate it.” Draymond Green offers a simple solution: “Fine them. They love taking money from players. Keep penalizing the teams.”

The league has already handed out $500,000 fines to the Jazz for sitting Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. in the fourth quarter of close games. But these penalties seem insufficient given the scale of the problem.

Silver wants a solution in place before June 2026, allowing new rules to be implemented before the 2026 draft. Three proposals are under consideration, all expanding the lottery to 18 teams and further flattening the odds. The goal: to break this destructive spiral that is undermining the competitive integrity of the NBA.

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