can anyone prove that a sports franchise has ever purposely lost games to have a higher draft pick?

[Varking]

7 minutes ago, GOAT said:

So the only strategy that is acceptable is the one that results in championships? Cleveland tanked to get LeBron. And if you judged it off year 1 or 2 they were still bad. Year 3 they got better. LeBron ended up getting them a ring. 

[GOAT]

[GOAT]

1 minute ago, Varking said:

So the only strategy that is acceptable is the one that results in championships? Cleveland tanked to get LeBron. And if you judged it off year 1 or 2 they were still bad. Year 3 they got better. LeBron ended up getting them a ring. 

you don't lose games on purpose and fake injuries to end up as a playoff team in the weakest conference. that's just, lmao...

the whole point of these things are to win championships.

Cleveland did not tank for Lebron. Seeing a lot of acquisitions on here with no real proof. just like 2010 Panthers, we just sucked.

[Varking]

Just now, GOAT said:

you don't lose games on purpose and fake injuries to end up as a playoff team in the weakest conference. that's just, lmao...

the whole point of these things are to win championships.

Cleveland did not tank for Lebron. Seeing a lot of acquisitions on here with no real proof. just like 2010 Panthers, we just sucked.

The point is to compete for championships every year. You do that by making the playoffs every year. 

[GOAT]

Just now, Varking said:

The point is to compete for championships every year. You do that by making the playoffs every year. 

and you don't compete for a championship every year if you lose on purpose LMAO

[GOAT]

I can see that this conversation is just focusing on NBA, no NFL - which really helps prove that this does not exist in football.

the NBA is a very different structure than the NFL. 

[J.B.]

37 minutes ago, GOAT said:

Enough is enough, I posed this question in another thread but feel the need to challenge this to the entire forum.

Can anyone provide info pertaining to a sports franchise purposely losing games to improve their draft position?

I'm even expanding this to other sports, I cannot think of a single time when a team obviously lost games in order to improve their draft positioning.

I don't believe that this is a real strategy and if that is the case, this weird fan fueled theory needs to be put to rest once and for all.

(BONUS: if you can provide an example of a team doing this, please include how this improved their team in the long run ie Rhule mentioning the Sixers believing in this method and it getting them nowhere...)

Prove it ....... no. But in a billion dollar business, do you really think it has never happened?

[Rocky Davis]

6 minutes ago, GOAT said:

you don't lose games on purpose and fake injuries to end up as a playoff team in the weakest conference. that's just, lmao...

the whole point of these things are to win championships.

Cleveland did not tank for Lebron. Seeing a lot of acquisitions on here with no real proof. just like 2010 Panthers, we just sucked.

I ain't seeing any acquisitions in this thread so far....maybe some accusations but no acquisitions! 

[stbugs]

7 minutes ago, GOAT said:

Enough is enough, I posed this question in another thread but feel the need to challenge this to the entire forum.

Can anyone provide info pertaining to a sports franchise purposely losing games to improve their draft position?

I'm even expanding this to other sports, I cannot think of a single time when a team obviously lost games in order to improve their draft positioning.

I don't believe that this is a real strategy and if that is the case, this weird fan fueled theory needs to be put to rest once and for all.

(BONUS: if you can provide an example of a team doing this, please include how this improved their team in the long run ie Rhule mentioning the Sixers believing in this method and it getting them nowhere...)

Just an FYI, there is a big difference between a team purposely losing games i.e. players not trying and a franchise trying to maximize their draft positions. Miami tanked 2019. They traded away their two best players (Tunsil and Minkah) for picks and got rid of other contracts like Mike Pouncey in 2018 and 2019. That's why they went hog wild on FAs in the 2020 off-season as well as had 3 firsts and 2 seconds in the past draft and have 2 firsts and 2 seconds in 2021. Their Tunsil trade is going to pay big dividends this year with right now pick 3 and pick 36.

That type of roster management to get higher picks happens a lot. As mentioned above and by you, that was 100% what the 76ers did to get Embiid and Simmons. While it didn't get them a championship, they went from 19, 18, 10 and 28 wins once Embiid and Simmons got healthy (lost 3 seasons between them) to 3 straight playoff appearances and they are 4-1 right now.

[Dilla]

I feel like people misconstrue what tanking in sports is. The players and coaches are not going out there losing on purpose. Tanking is when the FO strips the team of it's talent to the point where it won't compete. It gives opportunity for a roster reset with tons of cap space and high draft picks.

Perfect example was Miami last year, look at the rosters moves they made last offseason. Plus, they hired an inexperienced coach to head it all. Turns out, Flores is a pretty good coach, so they over achieved despite stripping their team of veterans.

[GOAT]

1 minute ago, Rocky Davis said:

I ain't seeing any acquisitions in this thread so far....maybe some accusations but no acquisitions! 

always fug that one up

[Varking]

you do when it’s for LeBron James. 

6 minutes ago, GOAT said:

and you don't compete for a championship every year if you lose on purpose LMAO

[GOAT]

the dolphins did not lose on purpose.

they ridded their roster of a couple guys for picks and chose to build things differently.

they did not lose on purpose.

[Varking]

1 minute ago, GOAT said:

the dolphins did not lose on purpose.

they ridded their roster of a couple guys for picks and chose to build things differently.

they did not lose on purpose.

Trading your best players isn’t trying to win now. It’s trying to win in the future. What is tanking?