The idea goes like this: Instead of a draft lottery system that encourages losing by awarding the best odds to the league’s worst teams, you’d determine the draft order based on the number of points each team earned after being eliminated from the playoffs. Once you’re mathematically out of the playoff hunt, you start the clock on banking points towards your spot in the draft order. The team with the most post-elimination points get the top pick, and so on down through the rest of the non-playoff teams.
The beauty of the plan is that it still weights the odds of getting the first pick heavily towards the league’s worst teams, because they’ll be eliminated first. In addition, the lottery is abolished and these issues are decided on the field instead of drawing lots.
Current Rule 5 ( incorporated by reference )
Proposed Rule
5.1 Draft Order for KRFL teams will be determined by dividing teams into playoff teams and nonplayoff teams.
5.2 Nonplayoff teams will be ranked based on how many games they won in the previous season after being eliminated from the playoffs. The team with the most wins after elimination is awarded the first pick in the free agent and rookie draft. Ties among teams with identical records are broken by the same tiebreakers as listed under existing rule 5.
5.3 Playoff teams will be ranked in the order they are eliminated from the playoffs. Ties will be broken under the same tiebreakers as listed under existing rule 5.
Doing a quick review of the 2021 season, the only changes I believe this proposal would have resulted in for the 2022 draft order would have been Kentucky, who is in the 2022 draft lottery, would have gotten the #1 pick and Cleveland, who is also in the 2022 draft lottery, would have dropped out of the lottery and would be picking between 10th and 12th. The teams that were eliminated early (weeks 10-14) and who are the teams that end up with top 5-8 picks typically one won one game after elimination, with the exception of Kentucky and Cleveland.
While I like the idea of motivating such teams to attempt to win games at the end of the season, I do not think this proposal will result in a substantially different draft order. I also do not feel we have any coaches in the current group who purposely do not play as hard to win these games to get in the draft lottery.
Under the proposal, there would be no lottery. Nonplayoff teams earn their draft position based on how many wins you get after you have been eliminated from the playoffs. Playoff teams would earn their slot just as they do under current rules.
Second, I think all owners try to win as many games as possible. The problem is the existing rules give incentives for teams to rebuild faster by trading their best players so they can get better draft positions. This proposal shifts the paradigm and creates better incentives for teams to win now.
As I review your comment, you like the idea of creating more incentives for teams to win at the end of the season but you doubt it will make much difference. If the only difference is teams will have more incentives to win at the end of the season and earn their lotttery picks, then I do not see you are making any negative reasons to reject the proposal.
I have tried a similar proposal - where the draft order is based on wins by non-playoff teams - so the teams with the most wins who don't make the playoffs get the number 1 pick. I think its a great idea, but the league has not gone for it, unfortunately.
The key difference is the wins clock starts ticking when you are eliminated from the playoffs so you are trying to win to get the best rookie pick . Also, there is no lottery, everything is settled on the field.
Am I missing something? Are people trying to lose? Is there true sandbagging? I do not think anyone just loses on purpose. This league is very lopsided. Good and Bad. Teams such as mine have to do things to make things better. It looks like we are losing but essentially trying to get better. I am not sure this rule does anything.
Do teams start selling off players because they can't win a championship - thus having a crappier team on the field. Yes. Does that help them lose? Yes.
