NBA Commissioner Adam Silver addressed the league's most pressing challenges during All-Star Weekend on Saturday, tackling issues like tanking, the draft lottery, potential expansion, and an ongoing investigation into the Los Angeles Clippers' dealings with Kawhi Leonard.
Silver emphasized the growing problem of tanking, pointing to recent fines he levied against two teams. On Thursday, he fined the Utah Jazz $500,000 and the Indiana Pacers $100,000 for resting star players in recent games, signaling a crackdown on the practice.
“We’ve got to look at some fresh thinking here,” Silver said. “What we’re doing, what we’re seeing right now is not working. There’s no question about it. Yes, is there more I can do? Have I attempted not only to respond to behavior we’ve seen but send a clear message that we’re going to be scrutinizing everything we see going forward? Absolutely.”
The commissioner noted that the NBA Competition Committee started earlier this season to reexamine the draft lottery system entirely. When pressed on whether discussions included stripping draft picks from tanking teams rather than just issuing fines, Silver confirmed the breadth of the talks.
“There is talk about every possible remedy now to stop this behavior,” Silver said.
Silver also touched on league expansion amid reports positioning Seattle and Las Vegas as leading candidates for new franchises. He urged caution, stating that no decisions have been finalized on the matter.
Among the hot-button topics was the league's pending investigation into whether the Clippers orchestrated a multimillion-dollar endorsement deal for Kawhi Leonard as a means to bypass salary cap restrictions, though Silver did not provide updates on its progress during the session.
