In the NBA, losing has its benefits. The lottery system is designed to help the worst teams in the NBA improve. With that said, there’s a bit of a loophole in that system.

In all likelihood, it wasn’t designed with the intention of incentivizing teams to lose on purpose. 

Yet, they do. For example, the Houston Rockets appear likely to be the worst team in the NBA for a third consecutive season. If they’d cared to, they could have made roster moves to help them avoid that fate. 

By contrast, the Toronto Raptors and Minnesota Timberwolves are middling. They won’t land elite lottery picks, but they won’t make deep playoff runs, either.

All told, don’t be surprised if all three of these teams make major changes ahead of 2023-24. 

Here’s a blockbuster deal that has all three of them helping each other do it.