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Tim BontempsESPN
In an interview with ESPN’s Malika Andrews for “NBA Today,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the changes the league has made to its system in recent seasons — from flattening lottery odds to adding play-in tournaments — have made a huge difference. He said he believes it has decreased. Incentives for the team to acquire high-profile prospects, including French prodigy Victor Wenbanyama.
“You have a 14% chance of getting the first pick,” says Silver. “At the end of the day, that’s what analysis is about, it’s not superstition. A 14% chance is better than a 1% chance or no chance at all. No, even if the team could be the worst team in the league and is one of the underperforming teams 14% of the time they are dealing [of winning the lottery].
“It’s one of those things where there’s no perfect solution, but we think the draft is the right way to rebuild the league over time. Among our partner teams, the worst performing teams are I still think it makes sense once it’s decided where it’s going to take place, we can replenish our inventory with the prospect of the best players coming in. So we couldn’t come up with a better system .”
Last week, Silver spoke to Phoenix Suns employees following the findings of an investigation into team owner Robert Thurber’s conduct over the past 20 years and his final decision to sell his stake in both the Suns and the WNBA. Did. Phoenix MercuryESPN’s Baxter Holmes reported that during the conversation, Silver said the idea of relegation had previously been discussed by the NBA as one possible solution to give teams more incentive to compete.
However, in an interview Monday afternoon, Silver said there was no realistic way to introduce the system into the NBA.
“I can’t say I was serious about relegation because we don’t have the same system as European football and it doesn’t make sense to send an NBA team to the G League or a G League team to the NBA,” Silver said. Said.
“But the consequences of finishing bottom of the league are dramatically detrimental to a team’s health, so it’s clear how other leagues can deal with situations like this that force teams to stay competitive. But that’s what I said: The people of Phoenix we’re keeping an eye on.
Regarding the prospect of expansion, another hot topic in NBA circles these days, Silver jokingly said, “Word got around quickly.” lebron james said earlier this month that he would like to one day be part of the ownership group for an expansion team in Las Vegas. He reiterated his previous stance that he hopes to get through future collective bargaining talks with the company. We plan to return to expansion eventually.
One thing Silver comes to mind is WNBA star status. Britney GrinerSilver said he and the league decided to try to bring her back to the U.S. after the NBA was told not to give Griner’s story any major spotlight in the first place. I’ve done everything possible.
“[We] Silver has been very public about our belief that she deserves to be released at this point. We have had direct conversations with the White House and the State Department. On opening night, Stephen Curry spoke about her imprisonment…to be honest, we believe that we should continue to raise her profile and communicate directly with the U.S. government at all levels. We are doing everything we know is available.
“But more than that, it’s very frustrating for everyone and her family, but I don’t know what else we can do right now.
As to why Silver is in Phoenix and talking to Sands employees, he said he understands they have a system that requires employees to call an anonymous hotline. Training and ongoing dialogue with team employees to ensure the right environment is in place within NBA teams to ensure that all employees are treated the way they deserve He added that emphasis should be placed on
“One of the things we started doing this year is talking directly to every team’s human resources group to make sure they have proper training in place. You can have a hotline and a system of things,” Silver said. “[We are] Having regular discussions on these issues with the Board of Directors, which ultimately oversees all teams, has raised awareness of issues around diversity and inclusion, and our team, of which we are a part, is data-loyal and We have ongoing discussions about what we are seeing on our team in terms of hiring practices in leadership positions.
“Our goal is to operate under best practices, not just for the NBA and sports leagues, but for the best of all things in the industry.”
