Zach Lowe has thrown a fascinating new idea into the NBA’s growing anti-tanking debate, and even by the standards of this year’s lottery reform discussions, it is a radical one.
Lowe described a concept that would not eliminate the draft itself, but would eliminate the fixed draft order. Instead, each team would receive a set number of “draft credits” to bid on individual picks, with the possibility of trading those credits, rolling them over to future years, and losing some of them as teams advance deeper into the playoffs. The idea came up in league conversations and intrigued at least a few general managers.
What makes the proposal so compelling is that it attacks tanking from a different angle than the league’s current plans. Rather than tweaking lottery percentages or slightly reshuffling odds, it would replace the entire logic of losing for position. A team could push all its credits toward the No. 1 pick, spread them across several spots, or save them for a future class it likes better. In theory, that would turn the draft from a reward for failure into a long-term strategy game. That is an inference from the structure of the idea as reported, but it is exactly why it stands out from the more conventional reforms currently under consideration.
The NBA already presented three formal anti-tanking concepts to its Board of Governors, with modifications expected before a vote in May. Those plans include expanding the lottery field, flattening odds, and even bringing some playoff-adjacent teams into the draft process. So this is not a case of Lowe tossing out a fantasy in a vacuum. It is landing in a moment when the league is openly searching for dramatic structural answers.
Still, Lowe’s draft-credits concept appears to be more of an intriguing side idea than an imminent league policy. The formal proposals on the table are still built around revised lottery systems rather than a full auction-style marketplace for picks. That distinction matters. The idea is worth taking seriously because it reimagines incentives in a deeper way than most reforms do, but there is no indication the NBA is about to adopt it as official policy.
Zach Lowe shares a tanking solution idea that came up in the GMs meeting that intrigued a few General Managers:
A proposal to not get rid of the draft entirely, but get rid of the draft order. Every team gets 100 draft credits let’s say. You bid your draft credits on every… pic.twitter.com/WzvGQoybZM
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) April 10, 2026
