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"Stupid NBA crap" - Charles Barkley explains the one simple change that would kill tanking forever
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- "Stupid NBA crap" - Charles Barkley explains the one simple change that would kill tanking forever
Given how severe the tanking problem was this season, the NBA has been busy burning hours thinking through the best possible solution to end intentional losing in the league.
Most recently, it was reported that during the NBA GMs meeting, it was proposed that the Bottom 3 teams would get worse odds to land the No. 1 pick than the teams ranked 4-10. That way, the NBA does not abandon its weighted Draft Lottery system. They are just tweaking it a bit.
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But Hall of Famer Charles Barkley thinks that the NBA's weighted system is a "stupid crap" and that it should simplify things by just giving every non-playoff team equal chances of landing the top pick to stop tanking.
"I've been saying this for years. Teams been just tanking for three months. Every team that does not make the playoffs should get one ball. You can't improve your chances losing. Every team gets one ball. That would be the fair way to do it."
Just give everybody one ping pong ball
The NBA adopted the weighted system beginning in 1990 to give the team with the worst record in the league a better chance of landing the top pick. Since then, it has been modified to prevent teams from tanking to reach the bottom. In 2019, it was altered so that the teams with the three worst records would have equal odds at the top pick, and the lottery was expanded to the Top 4 picks.
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But whether the worst team has the best chance or the worst three teams have the highest odds, the idea is still the same: rewarding the worst teams by giving them a better chance at getting the best player in the draft. Kenny Smith then posed a question.
"Where else in the world where deficiency, you get a reward for deficiency?" asked Smith.
"Nowhere else…only in our stupid NBA crap," added Barkley. "Come on, man. Stop doing that, man. Just give everybody one ball, that would stop tanking."
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Losing teams should also not be allowed to increase ticket prices
Aside from not giving tanking teams an advantage in the Draft Lottery, Barkley also reiterated his longtime stand of not allowing teams that finish the regular season below the .500 mark the right to implement ticket price increases during the next immediate campaign.
"I've said this for years, not just now. Not just basketball, football, baseball, any sport. I'm a firm believer that if you finish below .500, you should not be able to raise your ticket prices. If you suck, you should not be able to raise your ticket prices," Barkley explained.
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Smith went on to play devil's advocate, asking, " What if Wemby was hurt last year? " To which Barkley replied: " That's just unfortunate if he got hurt."
Kenny thinking about teams that suffer injuries is just like the NBA saying the worst teams should have better odds of winning the lottery. Of course, it's the league's prerogative to maintain the balance of competition by doing its best to help bad teams get better. But at the same time, these teams have abused that venue. Maybe Barkley has a point. It's time to take a hard stance on tanking and losing teams.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Apr 13, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
