Tanking! That word with negative connotations becomes a popular focal point around this time of year. In Sports, tanking is commonly referred to as purposely losing games with the objective being for a team to get a better draft pick the following season.
Firstly, professional players, do not intentionally try to lose. Pro athletes have enormous egos with great pride and dignity. In addition, a coach will never give a pre-game pep talk suggesting: “Let’s lose one for the gipper”.
There is no benefit to the players suffering defeat after defeat, however, teams can certainly utilize their roster, so they don’t always have the best chance to win.
Have the Philadelphia 76’ers purposely lost 25 NBA games in a row (heading into Thursday’s contest in Houston) or are they just that awful?
It is difficult to gauge intent, so to prevent teams from purposely attempting to finish last overall, the lottery system was created in the NHL (WHL) and NBA. 30 years ago, this issue was prominent, yet every spring we reflect on the pros and cons of the worst team in the standings getting the best available amateur player. In theory, it should work that way.
The New Jersey Devils were suspicious of the Pittsburgh Penguins throwing their last few games of the 1983-84 season to acquire the 1984 first overall draft pick—Mario Lemieux, who ended up saving the franchise. The Penguins finished with a mere 38 points, three less than the Devils. New Jersey got the consolation prize with the #2 pick, Kirk Muller, who turned out to be a very good player, but not close to the stature of #66, who averaged a whopping four points a game in his final year of junior.
The 2014 NBA draft offers, by all accounts, marquee players at the top, including Canadian Andrew Wiggins (Kansas). The 76’ers will land Wiggins or another so called franchise player, but we are only left to guess if Philadelphia’s lengthy losing streak is legitimate or not. If one looks carefully at its roster, on paper, they are as bad as advertised.
Picking first overall in some years offers no guarantees. The Edmonton Oilers remain cellar dwellers despite having in their lineup the #1 player taken in three straight drafts: Taylor Hall (2010), Ryan Nugent Hopkins (2011) and Nail Yakupov (2012).
In the WHL, the Prince George Cougars selected Jarrett Smith first overall in the 1994 Bantam Draft, Ryan Kerr with the top pick in 2004 and Alex Forsberg with the #1 pick in 2010. Smith underachieved, Kerr struggled and Forsberg (like Smith and Kerr) has failed to live up to his advance billing.
It’s ironic that the two worst teams in the WHL this season, Lethbridge and Kamloops, did not win the lottery even though they had the best odds. Saskatoon did, but because of an earlier trade the Blades made with Brandon, the Wheat Kings will pick first. Something doesn’t seem right when a playoff team like the Wheat Kings will select ahead of the Hurricanes and Blazers, who clearly were the worst team in their respective Conference.
There are some Vancouver Canucks fans that are actually hoping the team loses every game for the rest of the season even though they are mathematically in the race for the 8th and final playoff spot. The theory being, the club might as well get as high a draft pick as possible considering they are not a Stanley Cup contender.
The NFL has not yet resorted to a lottery and the Indianapolis Colts can be grateful for that since they are reaping the benefits of taking QB Andrew Luck first overall in 2012. There isn’t a clear answer as to whether a weighted lottery is necessary. The cynics have their theories whether one is in place or not. Given that there appears to be a lack of integrity with many losing teams, the current system seems to suffice.
And another 30 years from now, the debate will still be raging on. Yes, despite suspicions, we will truly never will know if the 83/84 Penguins purposely “tanked” or not.
From the Quote Rack:
It’s fitting that the Houston Texans traded quarterback Matt Schaub to the Oakland Raiders for a 6th round pick. Last year he set a record for pick sixes.
At the Dade County (Fl.) County Fair last week, restaurant owner Brett Enright created a world record 125-pound hot dog. Former major league reliever Darold Knowles is disputing that claim, saying that Reggie Jackson played at 195 pounds.
Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California New York Jets QB Geno Smith says that the signing of Michael Vick is “awesome.” Makes sense, no matter how rocky Smith’s next season is, he still probably won’t be the most booed QB in town.
Kobe Bryant told a reporter he thought President Obama could play for the Lakers. “That’s not a diss at the current roster that we have, but more of a sign of respect of the skill that the president possesses.” And Kobe said the first part of that sentence with a straight face.
Contributor Janice Hough of Palo Alto, Californiawww.leftcoastsportsbabe.com
NDP MLA Jenny Kwan was caught using the government dime to travel to Europe and Disneyland. She is now taken a leave of absence. When asked “What are you going to do next?” she replied “I’m going to Disney World.” OHL Windsor Spitfires goalie Dalen Kuchmey left the ice; got changed and drove home while they were behind 8-1 in the middle of a game. “You can do that?” asked players from the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Comedy writer TC Chong of Vancouver (http://alwaysfunny.com/)
And in case you missed it:
Olympic gold-medalists Team Brad Jacobs got honored with a pre-game faceoff in Edmonton. That’s nice; it’s been a while since Oiler fans applauded a winner.
Comedy writer RJ Curriewww.Sportsdeke.com
Hartley Miller is the sports director for radio station 94X. His column appears Fridays on hqprincegeorge.com. Send along a quote, note, or anecdote to [email protected].
Follow him on twitter: @Hartley_Miller