Hoops Tonight: How NBA Can FIX Tanking Immediately + Rating Adam Silver as Commissioner

Podcast: The Herd with Colin Cowherd / Hoops Tonight
Host: Jason (The Volume)
Date: February 21, 2026

Episode Overview

In this mailbag-driven episode of Hoops Tonight, Jason delves deep into two of the NBA’s biggest ongoing meta-topics: fixing tanking in the draft system, and evaluating Adam Silver’s legacy and role as commissioner. Along the way, the show explores creative fan questions about All-Star formats, league parity, controversial roster moves, and player development. Jason offers nuanced, often pragmatic takes, aiming to clarify not only what he would do, but also why many “obvious” solutions fall short in the NBA’s complex reality.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The NBA Tanking Problem: Why It’s So Hard To Fix

[03:00 – 09:50]

• Fan Proposal: Should play-in losers get top-four draft picks, with the rest of the lottery odds flattened?
• Jason’s Reasoning:
  • The league’s flattened-odds lottery hasn’t stopped tanking; in fact, tanking remains “epic” despite reform.
  • Abolishing the draft outright could introduce outside influences (e.g., shoe companies, agencies) pressuring player destinations, creating “a whole new set of problems.”
  • Absolute parity in lottery odds (all 14 non-playoff teams having the exact same chance) is Jason’s preferred fix:

    "If every single one of those teams had the same odds, there would be absolutely no benefit to losing basketball games towards the tail end of the season... The teams on the play-in cusp wouldn’t intentionally tank for a 1-in-14 shot." — Jason [06:26]

  • Moving the “tanking bar” higher (to the middle seeds) makes intentional losing less attractive, since those teams are often closer to competing and less likely to sacrifice their culture for minor odds.
  • There’s no “perfect solution,” but flattening the odds for all non-playoff teams is a practical step.

2. Relegation, Parity, and How Teams Actually Get Good

[13:11 – 16:40]

• Fan Perspective: An ex-soccer fan notes the negative effect of no relegation and rewarding losing, positing that strong scouting and culture are more important than just draft position.
• Jason’s Take:
  • Building a quality team requires layered success: Top picks help, but “even top picks can be misses.”
  • “The best teams tend to be great at every level of their talent acquisition and then talent development as well.” — Jason [15:45]
  • Scouting—late-first, second round, overseas, undervalued NBA veterans—is as crucial as drafting stars.
  • Tanking is overemphasized in popular discourse; team-building is multidimensional.

3. Creative All-Star Game Solutions

[17:08 – 19:45]

• Fan Suggestion: Four-team, single-elimination All-Star format with stars vs. deep-bench All-Stars.
• Jason’s Reaction:
  • Likes short games and multiple teams, especially if formatted to drive “natural rivalries” (e.g., young vs. old, international vs. domestic, voted-in stars vs. hungry runner-ups).
  • “You get a group of younger, hungrier All-Stars... that might bring a competitive energy against the established stars.”
  • Format doesn’t matter as much as intentionally building excitement and stakes.

4. Rating Adam Silver as NBA Commissioner

[19:45 – 23:55]

• Fan Critique: Silver’s been inconsistent—creative All-Star tweaks and tournaments, but feeble on foul-baiting, tanking, and streaming/TV deals.
• Jason’s Evaluation:

  • Silver “lands in the middle”—well-intentioned, experimental, but sometimes not forceful enough on discipline.

  • Praises Silver for “trying shit” and adapting the All-Star format, the play-in, and the in-season tournament, recognizing ownership will not shorten the season.

  • “Adam Silver's job is to drive revenue for the league. The owners want money, the players want money... Ultimately, he's just doing his job.”

  • Fans want fewer games & better TV experiences, but Silver’s hands tied by ownership wanting higher total revenues.

  • Suggests the best hypothetical changes: shorten season, enforce anti-tanking/foul-baiting, maximize on-court quality, implement subjectivity for refs to call non-basketball plays automatic turnovers.

    “If there’s any sort of non-basketball play, automatic turnover. You did that for two weeks... They’d adjust and they’d stop doing that shit.” — Jason [23:36]

5. Dunk Contest Alternatives and NBA Event Innovation

[30:36 – 31:46]

• Fan Suggestion: Replace NBA players with Instagram/YouTube dunk artists.
• Jason: Agrees—would rather see 4 pro dunkers with TV production value, and would prefer a 1-on-1 tournament as the marquee All-Star Saturday event.

6. Nuggets’ Fourth Quarter Clutch Issues

[31:46 – 32:50]

• Stats: Denver has blown 13 fourth-quarter leads in 20 losses.
• Jason’s Explanation: Cites long-term clutch excellence as evidence this season is an outlier—a noisy stat due to injuries more than systemic problem.

7. Evaluating East-West Parity

[32:50 – 33:47]

• Fact: West slightly ahead in inter-conference games (145–142).
• Opinion: Gap is closing, but true parity is in conference depth, not top-tier team quality.

8. Superstar Impact and the Tatum vs. Shea Debate

[33:47 – 35:49]

• Fan notes Tatum’s all-around numbers in Boston’s title run; asks why Jason singles out Tatum but not Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
• Jason: Shea was simply more dominant, especially in late-game playoff moments. Tatum’s defensive and team impact is acknowledged, but “when it comes to that superstar half-court surgeon type of play that you need, Shea provided so much more.”

9. Cam Thomas Waiver Situation & NBA's Scoring Machine Dilemma

[36:00 – 38:36]

• Background: 24 PPG scorer Cam Thomas gets waived, raises questions about team culture vs. raw scoring.
• Jason: Thomas is ultra-one-dimensional—high usage, low assists, little defense, thinks he’s a top option without the full skillset.

  “If Cam Thomas thinks he's a #1 option... he's going to have a hard time finding a place to play.”

  • Milwaukee is a plausible flier, but his NBA longevity depends on accepting a secondary, team-first role.

10. Player Role Optimization: J-Dub and the Thunder

[39:30 – 41:50]

• Fan Suggests: J-Dub (OKC) should adopt more of a Draymond Green-style role.
• Jason’s View: Instead of a strict Draymond role, J-Dub must continue to attack the rim and create—OKC lacks enough dribble-penetration threats. Adjust shot profile to prefer drives over midrange jumpers, particularly as he gets healthier.

  “J-Dub needs to be hunting those heads of steam as much as possible and not getting into his just like kind of dribbling in front of his defender. ... I think when we get to the postseason that J-Dub is going to attack the basket recklessly.” — Jason [41:40]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On draft reform:

  “There's no obvious solution. But most of the solutions I've seen pitched also just come with other options... Flattening out the odds for every team is the best one I can come up with.” — Jason [05:54]

• On Adam Silver:

  “Say what you want, there have been some serious wins there. ... I admire that Adam Silver goes, 'Alright, so these guys never want to get rid of games ... how do I drive more intrigue and interest while also acquiescing to the requests of the people that pay me?'” — Jason [22:17]

• On foul-baiting:

  “The biggest thing that will drive health of the league is the quality of the basketball. If you can't increase the urgency ... at least increase the quality of the TV product.” — Jason [23:10]

• On Cam Thomas:

  “When you are that and nothing else, you have to be transcendently great at it for it to make sense.” — Jason [37:10]

Key Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment / Topic | |-----------|--------------------------------------| | 03:00 | Tanking proposals & the flat lottery | | 06:30 | Dangers in abolishing the draft | | 09:50 | Why tanking persists | | 13:11 | Why team-building requires more than high picks | | 17:08 | All-Star game alternate formats | | 19:45 | Adam Silver’s performance critiqued | | 23:36 | Hypothetical reforms if Jason was commissioner | | 30:36 | Dunk contest—bring in pro dunkers | | 31:46 | Nuggets clutch struggles | | 32:50 | East-West parity update | | 33:47 | Tatum vs. Shea superstar debate | | 36:00 | Cam Thomas waived—what it means | | 39:30 | J-Dub’s role in OKC |

Summary Table: Jason’s NBA Reforms Wishlist

| Problem | Jason’s Solution/Ideal Change | |--------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------| | Tanking | Flat lottery odds for all 14 non-playoff teams | | Foul-baiting | Subjective ref discretion: all obvious non-basketball moves = turnover | | All-Star Weekend | Multiple teams, short games, manufactured rivalries | | Dunk Contest | Use professional/internet dunkers, not reluctant NBA stars | | Season length | Shorten to 66 games (not realistic under current league motives) | | TV/Streaming Confusion | Centralize or simplify broadcast access, if owners allowed | | Load management | Aggressively fine teams for tanking or pointless resting in prime slots |

Final Thoughts

Jason’s episode is a tour de force of NBA policy and culture debate—clear-eyed about the “no perfect solution” reality, but also creative and hopeful about reforms that would improve both the sport’s integrity and product. His guiding theme is complexity: winning teams—and leagues—do best when they attack problems on every level, not just with one-size-fits-all fixes.

For non-listeners: This episode offers a fast-moving, opinionated masterclass on why perennial issues like tanking, parity, and star-driven league policy remain unsolved, and why that doesn’t mean they’re hopeless.