Wizards’ yearslong tank nears end as NBA teams race to the bottom

The Washington Wizards’ annual race to the bottom of the standings is coming down to a photo finish as the NBA’s cellar dwellers bottom out in an effort to land a highly coveted top pick in this year’s top-heavy draft.

The 17-62 Wizards rank as the worst team in the league after a 31-point loss to the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday night. The defeat allowed Washington to accomplish one of its primary goals for the season: keeping its first-round pick.

Thanks to a convoluted series of trade protections from 2020, the Wizards would keep their top selection only if it landed in the first eight picks. Washington’s latest defeat guaranteed that the Wizards would finish as one of the NBA’s three-worst teams, thus landing a top-seven selection.

Washington’s tank, a controversial strategy where teams appear to intentionally field uncompetitive rosters in an attempt to improve their odds in the draft lottery, is nearing its conclusion. After trading for All-Stars Trae Young and Anthony Davis earlier this season — and another top prospect on the way — the Wizards are primed to compete for a potential postseason berth next season for the first time in more than five years.

But the path to get here has been ugly.

Young has played just five games in Washington as the team takes a conservative approach to his recovery from a quad injury. Davis has yet to suit up due to a lingering issue with his hand.

Neither star acquisition is expected to play in the Wizards’ final three games, coach Brian Keefe announced Tuesday.

Younger core players such as Alex Sarr, Kyshawn George and 2025 first-rounder Tre Johnson have missed significant time due to injuries. In their place, Keefe has fielded lineups that featured several players who started the season in the developmental G League.

Players such as Leaky Black, Julian Reese and Jamir Watkins have forced even the most dedicated Wizards fans to double-check their game programs.

But Washington is far from the only franchise eager to boost its lottery odds. The difference between the NBA’s haves and have-nots has intensified. Teams without a clear path to the postseason have accepted their fates and turned their attention to the draft.

In the Eastern Conference, 10 games separate the final play-in team — the Miami Heat — and the 11th-place Milwaukee Bucks. The Western Conference boasts an even bigger gap, with 11 1/2 games between the Golden State Warriors and the New Orleans Pelicans as the 10th and 11th-best teams.

The Wizards, who enter Thursday’s game against the Bulls on a seven-game losing streak, have just been the most effective. They are one game “ahead” of the Indiana Pacers in the race for the best lottery odds. Washington has already locked itself into a 14% shot at landing the No. 1 selection in the upcoming draft.

Tanking in the NBA has become an epidemic. The strength of the upcoming class — with elite prospects such as Duke’s Cameron Boozer, BYU’s A.J. Dybantsa and Kansas’ Darryn Peterson — has made losing more enticing.

But it’s made the NBA’s on-court product worse. The average NBA game this season has featured a margin of victory of 13 points, the largest in NBA history.

“We are going to fix it. Full stop,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in March. “And I want to say that directly to our fans.”

The NBA made its first concerted effort to punish tanking teams in February when it fined the Utah Jazz $500,000 for benching their best players during close games. The Indiana Pacers received a $100,000 fine at the same time. The league hasn’t served any other punishments in the intervening two months.

In the meantime, the Jazz have since used injury-related minutes restrictions to explain questionable lineup choices. Utah has lost 10 straight games and is primed for a top-five pick.

“I get fined when I do wrong,” Warriors forward Draymond Green said Tuesday. “Just fine the hell out of people. They love taking money from players. Keep fining teams. I’ve seen two fines. As players, they snatch that money in a heartbeat. Why isn’t it the same? Everybody loves money.”

Any permanent adjustment to the NBA’s approach to tanking likely will wait until next season.

The Wizards will look to cement their lottery odds against the Bulls on Thursday. Washington will end the season with a final home game against the Heat on Friday and a season finale in Cleveland against the Cavaliers on Sunday.