There is almost zero question who will go first overall in the next NBA draft. French superstar Victor Wembanyama is widely expected to be the top pick, and for good reason. The NBA has never seen a player like Wembanyama, and whatever team has the opportunity to select him will be immediately adding a franchise player.
Because of the hype around Wembanyama, there may be a greater emphasis on tanking this season than ever before. Teams with little to no chance at making the playoffs feel they would be better off gunning for the top pick than reducing their odds by picking up a few extra meaningless wins.
In an exclusive interview with ESPN’s Nick Friedell, Brooklyn Nets superstar Kevin Durant was asked if there is an issue with teams taking Victor Wembanyama, and was very honest with his answer.
“Nah, teams have been tanking for a minute,” Durant said. “What, you’re going to force them to be competitive? I don’t see a problem with it, because each year there’s only a few teams that can win it anyway. So the rest of the league is trying to figure out where they are. And that’s pretty smart business if you’re a team and you know you’re not going to be a playoff team or play-in team, you might as well try to play for [the No. 1 pick]. You might as well try to get some of the guys who probably won’t get real rotation minutes if you have a good team, get them some reps and maybe those guys can change their lives as well.”
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Seeing the potential positives with this approach, as well as the logic that many front offices follow, Durant does not have a big problem with tanking. With a player like Wembanyama on the line, several are happier with losses than wins this season.
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