29 votes in favor, 1 against! NBA officially passes new lottery rules, to be trialed for three drafts starting next year

On May 29, Beijing time, the NBA Board of Governors officially approved a new lottery system today, aimed at preventing teams from deliberately tanking to improve draft position. According to renowned insider Shams, the vote resulted in29 in favor and 1 against, with only the Memphis Grizzlies casting the opposing vote.

Sources indicate that the Grizzlies opposed solely due to the new rule stating "a team cannot have a top-five pick in three consecutive years."

Salary cap expert Marks noted that Memphis holds the most valuable first-round pick among the three teams—Cleveland, Minnesota, and Utah—in 2027. Since Utah received a top-five pick again this year, under the new rule, their 2027 first-round pick cannot fall within the top five.

This new system, called the "3-2-1 Lottery System," expands the number of lottery teams from 14 to 16 and significantly flattens the odds for teams failing to reach the playoffs or play-in tournament. The rule will take effect starting with the 2027 NBA Draft and apply to three drafts, with rules for 2030 and beyond to be voted on separately. The details are as follows—

Equalized Odds & Draft Drop Mechanism

Teams participating in the lottery will each receive 3, 2, or 1 lottery balls:

All teams that miss the playoffs and play-in tournament initially get 3 lottery balls each; to encourage competitive effort, the three worst teams in the league will face a "draft drop," losing 1 lottery ball.

The 9th and 10th seeds in each conference's play-in tournament each receive 2 lottery balls.

The losers of the 7th vs. 8th seed play-in games in each conference each receive 1 lottery ball.

Drawing Process

All lottery balls from the 16 participating teams are mixed together in a drawing, with the results determining the order for the first 16 picks.

Draft Pick Floor

Teams subject to the "draft drop" are guaranteed no lower than the 12th overall pick.

Other lottery teams can fall as low as the 16th overall pick.

The specific odds for each position are listed in the table below—

Draft Pick Restrictions

No team may hold the No. 1 overall pick in consecutive years, nor may they have a top-five pick in three consecutive years. This restriction applies only to a team's own original pick, regardless of whether the pick is kept or traded.

Teams are prohibited from including protection clauses for picks in the 12th to 15th range when trading future first-rounders.

Penalty Mechanism

The league will increase its authority to penalize tanking behavior, including reducing a team's lottery odds, adjusting its draft position, and imposing substantial fines.

Since October last year, the league's management has been consulting with various stakeholders on existing competitive issues and soliciting proposals to curb tanking, ultimately finalizing this 3-2-1 lottery system.

This rule applies to the 2027, 2028, and 2029 drafts; draft order rules for 2030 and beyond will be determined by a separate NBA Board vote.