The world’s strongest basketball league has launched a comprehensive investigation over suspicions of intentional losing, and under special scrutiny are games featuring the biggest stars from the region – Nikola Jokić and Luka Dončić.
The NBA is facing increasing public pressure due to so-called “tanking.” It is a strategy used by teams that no longer have a chance to reach the playoffs, deliberately losing games in order to secure a worse position in the standings, and thus a better spot in the upcoming draft.
The league commissioner’s office has decided to identify and strictly sanction such attempts, and the investigation has now also included several controversial games involving the Denver Nuggets and the Dallas Mavericks.
One of the most drastic examples cited is the matchup between the Denver Nuggets and the Utah Jazz. Although Denver made an incredible 21:5 run in the final quarter and overturned a double-digit deficit, investigators’ attention was drawn to the decision of Utah’s coaching staff.
Namely, their two most efficient players, Kyle Filipowski and Bryce Sensabaugh, spent the entire fourth quarter on the bench, without a single second on the court in decisive moments.
A similar pattern of behavior was also noticed in a Los Angeles Lakers game, where the Brooklyn Nets decided to play the closing stretch without key players such as Nic Claxton, Ziaire Williams and Noah Clowney.
The NBA commission believes that such decisions directly affect the fairness of the competition and the integrity of the sport, which is why severe penalties are expected for teams proven to have deliberately manipulated results.
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Source: Nezaviosne novine Foto: USA TODAY Sports / ddp USA / Profimedia