Rumors

The game slows down and scoring usually drops through a combination of fewer possessions and worse shooting; this postseason the drop-off has been dramatic: through the first half of the First Round, 14 of 16 Playoff teams scored fewer points (per 100 possessions) than they did in the Regular Season.

Charting Hoops

Keerthika Uthayakumar: Road teams are now 10-7 in Game 7s since the 2021 season.

x.com

The NBA asked the nation's top commodities regulator Thursday to impose tighter restrictions on players, game officials and team staff to ensure prediction markets don't undermine sports integrity and fan confidence. Dan Spillane, the NBA's executive vice president and assistant general counsel, wrote in a letter to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission that the integrity concerns posed by prediction markets are similar to those associated with sports betting.

ESPN

Per league sources, this latest proposal was well received by the majority of the league’s GMs. There was, the sources say, a belief from some GMs in the meeting that the bottom-three teams should be assured at least a top-10 pick, as opposed to top 12, and that this current structure in the proposal is too punitive. There was also a sense from some that the seventh and eighth seeds should be treated the same, receiving one ball each regardless of who wins that Play-In game. Those sorts of specifics will continue to be hashed out in the weeks ahead.

New York Times

In the days leading up to this latest meeting, league officials and general managers alike had indicated that Option No. 1 from the previous GM’s meeting — an 18-team lottery system in which the bottom 10 teams would all have an 8 percent chance at the top pick — was widely seen as the heavy front-runner. But with the NBA’s executive vice president of strategy and analytics Evan Wasch leading the way, league sources say the decision was made to formulate a plan that took components from all three of the previous proposals. As has been the case throughout this process, changes could still be made to the proposal ahead of the Board of Governors meeting.

New York Times

In addition, no team would be able to win the top pick in consecutive years or be able to win three consecutive top-five picks. Teams also would not be able to protect picks in the 12 to 15 slots going forward.

ESPN

Shams Charania: High-ranking officials across the NBA believe this new anti-tanking reform will de-incentivize losing while drawing lottery balls for all 16 qualifying teams. It also incentivizes winning, particularly during the second half of the season, as the teams ranked near the bottom three would want to get out of the relegation zone while teams above them work for victories to stay out of the relegation zone.

x.com

Phil Jackson: 15 years I’ve been asking the NBA rules committee to widen the court apron. Corner shot b-comes 23.9”

x.com

Marc J. Spears: The NBA says 71 players have filed as early entry candidates for NBA Draft 2026. Players who have applied for early entry have the right to withdraw their names from consideration for the Draft by notifying the NBA of their decision in writing no later than 5 p.m. ET on June 13.

x.com

Jonathan Wasserman: 71 early entrants for 2026, down from 106 last year

x.com

NBA Communications: The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced today that 71 players have filed as early entry candidates for NBA Draft 2026, which will be held Tuesday, June 23 (First Round) and Wednesday June 24 (Second Round) at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

x.com

Tom Orsborn: Per NBA, if a player is diagnosed with a concussion, he cannot return to participating for at least 48 hours, including the date of diagnosis, and until after he completes the required return-to-participation process.

x.com

The NBA is in active discussions with both Kalshi and Polymarket about a prediction-market deal, Front Office Sports has learned. Talks with Kalshi and Polymarket have been happening on a more informal basis for more than a year, but they’ve ramped up in recent months, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. In particular, discussions have gained momentum since Michael Selig, who was confirmed as chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in December, began engaging with leagues and making clear the agency will propose rules aimed at ensuring integrity in sports markets.

Front Office Sports

Although discussions have progressed, there’s no clear time frame for when a deal might happen. “Anything is possible,” one source says. Multiple sources familiar with the matter tell FOS an agreement could be reached before the start of next season.

Front Office Sports