Podcast Summary: Tanking in Professional Sports

Podcast: Becker Business
Host: Scott Becker
Guest: David Pivnick (Partner, McGuireWoods LLP)
Date: February 12, 2026
Episode: "Tanking in Professional Sports with David Pivnick of McGuireWoods LLP"

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation between host Scott Becker and sports/business law expert David Pivnick. Their discussion centers on the controversial topic of "tanking" in professional sports, especially within the NBA. Together, they analyze the business, ethical, and fan-related dimensions of the practice, touch on real-world team strategies like the Chicago Bulls' recent moves, delve into financial impacts, and explore why tanking is more prevalent in basketball than other sports. The episode wraps up with Pivnick's reflections on current major sports stories and teams to watch.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Tanking Exists—Especially in the NBA

• Definition & Prevalence: Tanking refers to teams intentionally losing games to secure better future draft picks. It is most evident in the NBA due to the outsized influence a single superstar can have on a team's success ([01:44]).
• NBA vs Other Sports: Unlike football, baseball, or hockey, basketball allows one or two elite players to fundamentally change a team's prospects. In larger-roster sports, star talent has less immediate impact, lessening the incentive to tank ([01:44-03:32], [12:11]).
  • "In basketball, where you could go out there every day and have the best player, best two or three players on the floor, you're going to have a massive advantage...That’s why it’s so important." — David Pivnick [02:05]

2. Types of Tanking: Ethical vs. Unethical

• Unethical Tanking: Clearly manipulating outcomes (e.g., benching healthy star players during winnable games) damages league credibility and fan trust.
  • "Utah last week had a game where they were winning through three quarters and then benched their three best players in the fourth quarter...turned a win into a loss. That’s pretty blatantly unethical tanking." — David Pivnick [03:44]
• Ethical/Situational Tanking: Transparent roster decisions (trading for injured or future-focused players, building with youth) are less misleading to fans and may serve long-term objectives without as much deception ([04:44-05:23]).

3. Business and Fan Consequences

• Impact on Revenue: While in-season revenues may dip (especially single-game ticket sales and resale value), committed season ticket sales often cushion short-term loss ([09:07]).
• Biggest Risk: The challenge comes with convincing season ticket holders to renew for future seasons, requiring teams to effectively sell a vision for the post-tank era ([10:30]).
  • "The biggest impact is actually on existing ticket holders...that's where they have to sell the tank as a strategic pathway rather than just a negative." — David Pivnick [09:07]
• Long-Term Payoff: Lottery draft wins or superstar acquisitions are pivotal moments for revenue rebounds.
  • Chicago Blackhawks’ post-draft excitement after getting Connor Bedard cited as an example ([10:50]).

4. Real-World Example: Chicago Bulls’ Recent Moves

• The Bulls’ midseason “talent dump” is characterized as "ethical tanking"—openly trading mediocre veterans for younger, unproven players to develop future talent and increase lottery odds.
  • "They basically traded out of a mediocre season to what will now be a bad season. But they've increased their draft lottery chances this year and brought in a couple of young players that...could develop into something better." — David Pivnick [07:35]
• Fans are thought to understand and even embrace this approach for long-term benefit ([05:52-08:45]).

5. Why Other Sports Rarely Tank

• Football/Hockey/Baseball: Structural differences—more players, less direct individual impact, longer development pipelines—make strategic losing less attractive ([12:11]).
  • "The concept that you’re talking about in the NBA, one to two players can make a massive difference out of five...in football, you still need a lot more around that quarterback." — Scott Becker [12:22]

6. Broader Sports Stories (Outside of Tanking)

• Olympics: Pivnick expresses excitement for Winter Olympic events, especially speed skating and hockey ([13:17]).
• NFL: Shares personal intrigue over the Dallas Cowboys' offseason strategies.
• NBA Competitive Balance: Praises Oklahoma City’s roster and coaching, predicts a wide-open playoff race with multiple teams potentially contending based on health and matchups ([13:50]).
  • "Oklahoma City is clearly the best team in the league and has the best talent and cohesion, great coaching, depth. I mean, they really got it all." — David Pivnick [14:20]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Unethical Tanking:
  "That's pretty blatantly unethical tanking. It's just a team going out there intentionally trying to lose." — David Pivnick [03:44]
• On Fans and Fairness:
  "It's also not fair to teams that are trying to compete. But mostly I think it's unfair to the fans...It's disappointing." — David Pivnick [04:41]
• On Business Realities:
  "The challenge for these teams is convincing those season ticket holders to renew for future years...so you can be part of the exciting new era." — David Pivnick [10:30]
• On Bulls Fans' Experience:
  "If anything, it might be more exciting at this point to watch some of these young guys develop." — David Pivnick [08:32]
• On the Competitive NBA Landscape:
  "Other than [Oklahoma City], I think anybody could win. I think it’s very, very wide open..." — David Pivnick [14:38]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:30] — Introduction & context for tanking
• [01:44] — Why tanking is prevalent in the NBA
• [03:44] — Unethical vs. ethical tanking (Utah/Wizards examples)
• [05:23] — Case study: Chicago Bulls’ roster overhaul
• [09:07] — Ticket sales, revenue impacts, and the challenge of retainin fans
• [12:11] — Tanking (or lack of it) in other major sports
• [13:17] — Other current sports stories (Olympics, Cowboys, NBA playoff outlook)
• [15:32] — Closing remarks

Overall Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is candid, analytical, and infused with real-world business and fandom insights. David Pivnick combines expertise in sports and business law with the sensibility of a die-hard fan, exploring the line between acceptable rebuilding strategies and moves that undermine league fairness or customer trust. The episode is timely, thorough, and accessible even to listeners only casually versed in sports—the perfect primer for understanding why “tanking” dominates NBA headlines and how it shapes the business of professional sports.