A Radical NBA Draft Proposal That Could End Tanking for Good

In the wake of Emmanuel Clase having the audacity to go public with his desire to throw 0-2 fastballs in the dirt, the NBA has issues of its own when it comes to teams intentionally veering from the desired target.

Fortunately, I have a solution to the so-called problem.

In fact, I can resolve TWO of the league’s biggest issues at the same time, which makes my idea the best.

Seemingly everyone with a phone or a keyboard has a brilliant scheme on how to keep NBA teams from tanking. Most of them miss the mark for one basic reason:

The goal of the draft MUST continue to be to help bad teams. If your solution doesn’t aid in narrowing the talent gap between the league’s haves and its have-nots, then you need to try again.

Better yet, focus your save-the-world fixes for curling.

One problem up-and-comers have in the NBA is the salary cap. You can’t just go out and snatch up a bunch of big-time players without maxing out your credit card real fast.

Did you know that every team in the NBA except the Nets is over the misnomered cap? As a league, the 30 teams are legally cheating by a total of almost $1.3 billion this season.

Even the Dodgers must be envious.

So what you have are two types of teams trying to get better – the bad ones by coasting into a more desirable draft position, and the rich ones by playing games with the cap.

I’m left wondering: Which is really the top-of-the-list problem?

We can agree to disagree on that, and that’s OK, because my goal is to lessen the popularity of each.

Consider this:

Only teams under the salary cap on the day of the draft get to use their first-round pick.
Hand in hand, the draft lottery is restructured to include ALL teams, each with the same odds of earning the top slot.

This would eliminate any incentive to tank. At the same time, it would give teams a reason to start adhering to the spirit of the salary cap.

Here’s how this works:

When the Finals have crowned a champ in mid-June, all franchises are given two weeks to get their finances in order for the following season.

Then, on or around July 1, the draft lottery is held.

After the ping pong balls have landed, any team under the cap gets to keep its pick in the slot determined by the lottery.

But any team over the cap must either trade its slot or forfeit its first-rounder.

Think about it …

No more tanking and a shrinking in the disparity in payrolls.

Both are good things, right? And they could happen at the same time.

I know what some of you are thinking: If only the Nets are under the salary cap, why hold a lottery? Aren’t they assured of making the one and only first-round pick?

No, that’s not the case.

As noted, teams – even those over the cap – would be allowed to trade their lottery-created draft slots. But here’s the catch: Since it has no financial value, the pick could only be dealt for a future pick or picks, or in a package in which matching salaries are included.

In either case, it would almost surely be a team under the cap that acquired the draft slot. Because only they can use the pick that season.

So, again, no tanking, yet the desired result: A bad team gets better.

As for the Nets … as we stand today, the Grizzlies are in line to join them under the cap at the start of the NBA’s next fiscal year in July, while the Hornets and Jazz are close enough that a little roster creativity could get them in.

If this rule had been in place at the recent trade deadline, no doubt others would have maneuvered to get themselves into better financial shape.

By the end of next season, when the Lakers and Bulls already are scheduled to be under the cap, you’d likely have a lot more teams that qualify to make first-round picks. This following a season in which the financial gap has shrunk and bad teams have added the best young talent, creating greater parity to go with the lesser incentive to lose.

Problem(s) solved.

You want to take it another step? Do a lottery for the second round as well. Teams, say, $50 million over the cap (there are nine right now) are excluded, and there would be no incentive to lose games in order to get the best second-round picks.

Sorry, Emmanuel. With my pitch, you get a home run on 0-2.

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Ashley Westwood is no stranger to Indian football.

He guided Bengaluru FC to the then top-flight title in his and the club’s first season in Indian professional football and won three trophies with the club, becoming a legend among its faithful.

Last month, the former Manchester United academy graduate returned to coaching duties in Indian football after four years, taking charge of Kerala Blasters in the Indian Super League (ISL).

“I was here from the start of the ISL when it was only a six-week league… and now it has developed into an eight to 10-month league. So, I’ve seen it all. It has had a tough time this last year. But like anything, it’s a work in progress, a process,” Westwood tells Sportstar in an exclusive interview.

Ashley Westwood’s success at Bengaluru FC wasn’t just about results, but two I-League titles and a Federation Cup gave it weight and permanence. | Photo Credit: K. MURALI KUMAR

Ashley Westwood’s record in Indian football:

Teams managed: Bengaluru FC, ATK, Punjab FC, Kerala Blasters

Total matches: 89

Wins: 46

Losses: 26

Draws: 17

Trophies: I-League x2 (2013-14, 2015-2016), Federation Cup (2014-15)

But unlike Bengaluru, he finds himself in a precarious position at Kerala Blasters.

The three-time ISL finalist has struggled for form this season, and with no wins in six matches, the Blasters parted ways with head coach David Catala, while their fan club, the Manjappada, boycotted matches citing mismanagement.

“Football is challenging anyway. Sometimes you get fortunate, and you go into a club mid-season because a coach has done well, and you take over a team at the top of the league, but that’s very rare,” Westwood says.

“Normally, if you go into a club halfway through a season, it’s because they’re not doing very well, because a manager has lost his job. Of course, with Bengaluru, it was a brand-new club. So, any challenge is good.”

Westwood opened his Blasters stint on a forgettable note, losing 0-2 to the newly formed Sporting Club Delhi. However, he found the perfect opportunity to respond against Bengaluru FC in the match that followed, which the Blasters won for their first victory of the season.

“I enjoy challenges. There’s lots of improvement to come, hopefully, and maybe we can do that. I’ve done it before in all the roles I’ve been in. So, I’m hoping to do the same again. Let’s see if we can keep improving things,” he says.

The Achilles heel of the Blue Tigers?

Team Hong Kong head coach Ashley Westwood (R) talks to Matthew Elliot Wing Kai Orr of Hong Kong (L) during the Asian Cup qualifier Group C match at Kai Tak Stadium on November 18, 2025, in Hong Kong, China. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

There’s another side to Westwood beyond domestic football. He has managed two Asian sides, Afghanistan and Hong Kong. Both pulled off significant upsets against India.

In 2024, India lost to Afghanistan on home soil for the second time ever, which turned out to be one of the last matches under coach Igor Stimac. A year later, Hong Kong beat India in an AFC Asian Cup qualifier. Manolo Marquez, who had stepped into Stimac’s shoes, parted ways shortly after.

So, is the Englishman a nemesis for India’s coaches?

“No, it’s certainly not a personal thing. Coincidence happens in football. With me, I try to win every game, whoever it is,” Westwood says.

“Predominantly, my record shows that I do win quite a few games, and unfortunately, a few of them have been against India. I don’t look at it as a scalp; I look at it as a game of football, and one that we won.”

It was no surprise that Westwood was among the names circulating in Indian football circles as a potential coach of the Blue Tigers, first after Stimac and then after Marquez.

“It’s (the question has) come around a lot of times. I’ve been close a lot of times. It hasn’t happened. I won’t comment on that particular job where they have a manager, of course,” he says. “But regardless of the job, I’ll concentrate on what I need to do, which is improve Kerala Blasters.”

Winds of change at Kerala Blasters

There have been signs of optimism in the Blasters camp since his arrival. They have signed former Real Madrid Castilla winger Franchu, who scored the winner on his ISL debut against Bengaluru FC.

“Hopefully, this carries on. It’s simple: you give everything in a relationship and, normally, you get it back. Football has a unique way of taking care of you if you take care of your work rate. That’s all we’re trying to do,” Westwood says.

But the tactician will know that slip-ups could cost the team heavily, especially in a truncated season where each team plays each other just once.

Kerala Blasters’ remaining matches:

Kerala Blasters vs NorthEast United — April 15

Kerala Blasters vs Jamshedpur FC — April 18

Kerala Blasters vs Odisha FC — April 23

Kerala Blasters vs Mohammedan Sporting — May 10

Kerala Blasters vs FC Goa — May 23

Despite the win, the Blasters remain second from bottom, and losses from here, especially against bottom-placed Mohammedan Sporting, could see the club struggle to stay afloat in the top flight this season.

“We won’t be in a relegation dogfight. That’s my belief, not an expectation. I’m confident in myself. . . There’s definitely an area for us to improve and get some wins. So, I’m not concerned about where they were. I’m just trying to look at where we might finish,” he says.

Bengaluru FC earned a place in Indian football discussions in its maiden season under Westwood. The Blasters, who had slipped out of that discourse with underwhelming results, will look to tread a similar path under the same man in the dugout.

Published on Apr 14, 2026