Phoenix Suns owner Matt Ishbia added his voice to the conversation about tanking in the NBA. Ishbia issued a bold statement against the practice on his X account, citing an article by Yahoo Sports writer Tom Haberstroh.
He described the tanking tactics as “ridiculous” and said, “It’s a loser’s behavior by losers.”
“This is ridiculous! Tanking is losing behavior done by losers. Intentionally losing is something no one should be associated with. Shameful for leagues and organizations. And talking about it as a ‘strategy’ is ridiculous. If you’re a bad team, you get a good pick. It’s understandable. But intentionally tanking players and losing games on purpose is a disgrace and affects the integrity of the entire league.”
He also says it is worse than the prop betting scam, equating it to a strategically thrown game.
“This is far worse than any prop betting scandal. It’s throwing games strategically. Terrible for the fans who pay to watch and cheer on their team. And terrible for all the real teams that are competing for playoff spots.”
Ishbia’s comments are noteworthy, as he joins a growing group of NBA executives, media members and fans who believe something should be done about the practice. Ishbia’s comments, in particular, ring true, as his team is going through a renaissance after missing the playoffs last year. When Ishbia took over the Suns following the firing of Robert Sarver, he orchestrated the trade of Kevin Durant from the Brooklyn Nets to the Phoenix Suns. They then pushed for a trade that sent Chris Paul to the Wizards in exchange for Bradley Beal.
In both the Beal and Durant trades, the Suns gave up several first-round picks. Now winning is a double whammy. And even as the team’s ability to put together a Big Three with Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal faltered, Ishbia and the Suns remained focused.
Rather than looking for first-round capital to strengthen and rebuild the team, the Suns built around margin, acquiring Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green from the Rockets in exchange for Kevin Durant, as well as gaining more size in the front court by trading for Mark Williams.
The Suns are now 32-23 and in seventh place in the Western Conference; They are just two games behind the Timberwolves for sixth place and three games behind the third-seeded Nuggets. Perhaps Ishbia sees the Suns’ quick roster retooling as the benchmark for rebuilding a team.
The Suns head to San Antonio to face Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs tonight at 8:30 PM Eastern.
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