NBA commissioner Adam Silver declared Tuesday that the league's new anti-tanking rules represent a permanent shift in philosophy, regardless of what adjustments may come after the current three-year trial period expires following the 2029 draft.

"We'll never go back to where we were," Silver told ESPN ahead of the draft.

Silver said the problem reached a tipping point this past season, driven in part by the perceived strength of the 2026 draft class, which created widespread incentive for franchises to finish as low as possible in the standings.

"We ended up in a situation where fans of teams were actually rooting for their teams to be bad," said Silver. "It was particularly bad this year, I think, because of the perceived depth of (the 2026 NBA) Draft."

Under the revised lottery structure, the three worst teams in the league drop from a 14 percent chance of landing the top pick to 5.4 percent. Teams finishing fourth through 10th worst now each carry an 8.1 percent chance at the No. 1 selection.

Silver acknowledged a potential drawback of franchises genuinely attempting to win but falling into the bottom three could struggle to acquire the high picks needed to rebuild, risking a prolonged competitive cycle. The league committed to reassessing the system after three years to evaluate its effectiveness.

"But most importantly, we will not be returning to a system where there is an incentive to be bad," Silver said.