The NBA tanking problem is an utter disaster, and the Brooklyn Nets are a symptom of the broken system.<\/p>\n
The Nets on Wednesday night lost 121-92 to the Oklahoma City Thunder, by no surprise. That\u2019s not being disrespectful towards the Nets either, it\u2019s just common knowledge that their strategy is completely opposite from OKCs. One is trying to accumulate as many losses as possible, the other is trying to win as much as possible.<\/p>\n
Sean Marks, Jordi Fernandez, Joe Tsai and the Nets have caught their fair share of praise and flack. But it\u2019s not just leadership at play.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re navigating a system that rewards losing over competing.<\/p>\n
They\u2019ve tanked hard enough to be a bottom-3 team, but for some, it still hasn\u2019t been egregious enough because they\u2019re not the absolute worst team in the league.<\/p>\n
For the Nets, it\u2019s a conflict of interest and that conflict comes from balancing development and draft strategy with the desire to win. Marks and Fernandez both want to win. They have five rookies they need to develop, while scouting and praying they hit the lotto. Fernandez is in his second season as a coach so he\u2019s naturally hungry to win and continue to improve.<\/p>\n
The irony, of course, is that under the current system, math doesn\u2019t even guarantee a miracle. Even if the Nets manage to secure one of the three worst records in the league, they are only rewarded with a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick. The league has created a system where teams are forced to torch their culture and disrespect their fans for a reward that is statistically unlikely to actually happen.<\/p>\n
History bears that out: the Pistons had the best record three years running and finished fifth each time. The Mavericks and Hawks vaulted from the play-in to the overall No. 1. Of the top 28 picks in the last seven draft lotteries, since changes were instituted, 11 were won by teams with the seventh worst odds.<\/p>\n
We aren\u2019t just watching the Nets get blown out, we\u2019re watching them gamble their dignity on a metaphorical dice toss where the house almost always wins. Take a look at last year.<\/p>\n
This creates a bizarre disconnect when you look at the messaging. \u201cHe made it very clear \u2018I\u2019m going to try and win every game.\u2019 I said great, go for it. The goal isn\u2019t to not compete,\u201d said Marks before the season. \u201cThe goal is go out there, develop a culture of competing, playing hard & playing the right way. And that\u2019s what he\u2019s done.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was a noble sentiment at the time, but on nights like Wednesday \u2014 it feels like a hollow one.<\/p>\n
The score was 60-24 at halftime, the fewest points for any team since 2019. At that point they were shooting 1-of-16 from 3 and had three assists to 15 turnovers. Low effort isn\u2019t a habit this team can afford to pick up \u2014 it only makes development that much harder. That\u2019s where the frustration comes in.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think our readiness to play the game was not there,\u201d Fernandez said after the game.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s only one game, but that isn\u2019t exactly reassuring. These are young players who should be hungry every night, regardless of the opponent. Effort shouldn\u2019t be the variable. That\u2019s how bad habits start to form.<\/p>\n
Still, there\u2019s only so much blame they deserve. It was pitiful, even shameful – and almost as disrespectful as the game of basketball has been to its fans.<\/p>\n
Adam Silver has been open about expansion, which could happen as soon as 2028-29. But while more teams enter the league, more teams are also tanking than ever. As the 2024-25 season wrapped up, five teams lost by 30+ points in one day. The total number of games decided by 30+ points hit 79 at that point, tying the league mark for such games set in 2021-22.<\/p>\n
No matter how angry fans want to get at the Nets for tanking \u2014 or not tanking \u2014 this whole shtick is a necessary evil that\u2019s just flat out wrong. It\u2019s hardly a sport if you reward losing, yet it\u2019s the only way the Nets can navigate this flawed system.<\/p>\n
Marks inherited an awful product and we\u2019ll be clear about that. Over the past 10 years, the Nets have lost 50+ games six times, including this season. They\u2019re pushing their third potential 60-loss season during that span with a single playoff series victory to show for it.<\/p>\n
This season, it\u2019s impossible to dispute their tanking efforts. They\u2019ve lost by 50+ points two times. It\u2019s happened twice in franchise history before this season \u2014 once last year and the other in 1978. They\u2019ve lost by 30+ points six times with 12 games remaining; 20+ points on 19 occasions. have had 12 games this season where they\u2019ve been down 30 or more points at one point or another. Including two straight. It\u2019s a franchise record.<\/p>\n
So, for every 10 games that fans watch, roughly three out of 10 are lost by 20+ points. Here\u2019s a look at the 20+ losses from Brooklyn\u2019s season thus far:<\/p>\n
MarginDateOpponent-54Jan 21, 2026@ New York Knicks-53Feb 1, 2026@ Detroit Pistons-38Mar 10, 2026vs. Detroit Pistons-37Jan 25, 2026@ LA Clippers-37Feb 27, 2026@ Boston Celtics-36Nov 9, 2025@ New York Knicks-29Mar 18, 2026vs. Oklahoma City Thunder-29Dec 16, 2025vs. Cleveland Cavaliers-28Oct 27, 2025@ Houston Rockets-28Feb 19, 2026@ Cleveland Cavaliers-26Dec 1, 2025@ Chicago Bulls-26Mar 3, 2026@ Miami Heat-24Nov 2, 2025vs. Philadelphia 76ers-24Jan 1, 2026vs. Houston Rockets-23Dec 23, 2025@ New York Knicks-22Jan 18, 2026@ Chicago Bulls-20Mar 16, 2026vs. Portland Trail Blazers-20Feb 5, 2026@ Orlando Magic-20Jan 2, 2026@ Washington Wizards<\/p>\n
Now, compare this to 20 years ago in 2005-06: the worst team in the league (the Blazers) still won 21 games. While they had their share of blowout losses, they never experienced the absolute disaster we see today. That team didn\u2019t lose a single game by 50 points, a feat the Nets have already accomplished twice this season. They also only lost by 20+ points 12 times compared to Brooklyn\u2019s 19. And that\u2019s when bad teams had better odds to get the first overall pick!<\/p>\n
It\u2019s heartbreaking as a basketball fan because it\u2019s deliberate, yet if they finish with a top-3 pick in the 2026 Draft, these games will become friendly reminders when Cam Boozer or AJ Dybantsa slams one home as Barclays Center goes berserk.<\/p>\n
But until then, it\u2019s all a dream.<\/p>\n