Alex Sarr

[Zonkerbl]

If you're a bad team, jettison all your bad contracts, accumulate cap space, bid on free agents, some of whom might be rookies.

A fine recipe for New York and LA to gather all the talent and build dynasties. Big media market teams have all the advantages. Lotto or no, the draft is the only mechanism for small market teams to luck into a great player. Every Kareem will leave every Milwaukee to play for the Lakers.

But we have a salary cap for that problem. The ability for players to make more endorsement money in LA and NY is true *now*.

[dobrojim]

Zonk, if no draft, then teams would corruptly
collude to force players to eat crumbs. All hail
Curt Flood.

[doclinkin]

Conversation probably deserves its own thread but:

If you're a bad team, jettison all your bad contracts, accumulate cap space, bid on free agents, some of whom might be rookies.

A fine recipe for New York and LA to gather all the talent and build dynasties. Big media market teams have all the advantages. Lotto or no, the draft is the only mechanism for small market teams to luck into a great player. Every Kareem will leave every Milwaukee to play for the Lakers.

But we have a salary cap for that problem. The ability for players to make more endorsement money in LA and NY is true *now*.

And yet LA and NY aren’t quite able exploit it. Only able to bid high after players get free of rookie deals. Because the draft does send players to other starting points. Where the team has a chance to extend them for more $ than other teams are allowed to pay. And are allowed to exceed the cap to do so. Even if a player wants to go there, LA can only trade to land those players, by shipping out all their draft picks. If you remove the market value of those picks then small teams have no hope or leverage or capital.