NBA Tank Watch: Absolute Chaos at the Bottom! Bucks, Bulls, Pacers, Mavs, Grizzlies, More ...Middle East

Just two games to go, last chance for lottery teams to get their tanking in.

You know it’s bad when all ten teams missing the NBA play-in tournament still have room to either improve or worsen their lottery odds. Truly riveting stuff.

Get out your calculator because here’s a quick rundown of what’s happening at the bottom of the standings.

Bulls Tie Bucks After Winning 2 Straight

The Chicago Bulls, a team that’s lived on streaks — both highs and lows — all season, have now won two games at the worst possible time. Thanks to some unfortunate scheduling, they faced the “worst team in the NBA” record-wise, the Washington Wizards, twice in a row, right in the middle of their last chance to secure a strong pick in the 2026 NBA Draft.

The Wizards have so many players sitting out that they’re barely scraping together the eight required to even play a game. At this point, they’re harder to lose to than they are to beat. I mean, you’ve seen Patrick Williams, statistically the worst player in the NBA this season, have his best game of the year against them.

By losing those two games, Washington has now locked in the best possible odds at the number one pick, 14%, even if they win their final two games of the season.

Back-to-back Ws in Washington! pic.twitter.com/NTVI48tsrS

For the Bulls, though, it’s the opposite story. These wins have pushed them backward in the lottery standings, and they’re now tied with the Milwaukee Bucks in both record and odds. Every win chips away at their chances, making it tougher to jump up. And even if they don’t move, most mock drafts point to a noticeable drop-off in talent between picks nine and ten.

That’s what makes this even more frustrating. Even when the Bulls finally look like they’ve committed to a direction with the firing of their anti-tanking front office, the fact that it’s come this late makes the whole shift feel almost meaningless.

What makes it even worse? Their final two games are against Orlando, who are going through a rough stretch, and the Dallas Mavericks, who are stuck in a similar situation as the Bulls. Unless Billy Donovan rolls out Yuki Kawamura at center for all 48 minutes, it’s hard to see things changing.

Indiana Pacers are On the Bubble

The Indiana Pacers were just a half away from winning their first-ever NBA title less than a year ago. Today, they find themselves in another battle at the top, this time, the top of the NBA draft lottery odds.

By all accounts, this season has been a gap year for Indiana. While they’ve been retooling for next year, their franchise point guard has been recovering on the sidelines. The first clear direction they chose? Lean into the tank, position themselves for a top pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and add a potential generational talent to an already contending core.

But then came the second move: trading away that very pick, protected 1–4 and 10–30, for Ivica Zubac. So the plan became simple: tank just enough to secure top odds, then hope the lottery balls reward the risk. And even after last night’s win over the Brooklyn Nets, that door is still wide open.

That game carried major lottery implications. A loss would’ve locked Indiana into the best odds, a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, while also dropping Brooklyn’s odds from 14% to 10.5% with a win.

A true tank off game happens tomorrow between the Nets and Pacers, which features real implications and barely any legitimate rotation players suiting up:— Indiana clinches 14% chance at No. 1 with loss.— Brooklyn winning lowers their odds of landing No. 1 from 14% to 10.5%. pic.twitter.com/snSMwa1s00

Instead, the Pacers won. By 29. Yeah, not exactly sticking to the script.

They now sit at 19 wins with two games to go, meaning the Nets, Jazz, and Kings could all theoretically tie, or overtake them. That would almost guarantee Indiana slipping to fifth, which, in turn, means losing their pick altogether.

At this point, they just need one more loss to lock things in. So don’t be surprised if the injury report suddenly gets a little longer, and the rotations get even more experimental.

Down to the Wire

The Bulls and the Bucks aren’t the only teams tied in the standings. The Utah Jazz and the Sacramento Kings are locked in at four, while the Memphis Grizzlies and the Dallas Mavericks are tied at six, with all of them having just two games left to play.

The best-case scenario for these NBA teams is simple: face opponents who actually have something to play for. Because if it turns into a full-on tank-off, it becomes surprisingly hard to lose.

Unfortunately, that’s not the case for everyone. The Grizzlies and the Jazz, as well as the Bulls and the Mavericks, are set to face each other in these final two games. That means some of these teams are guaranteed to hurt their lottery odds, literally on the last day of the season.

Bulls/Bucks, Grizzlies/Mavs, Jazz/Kings6 teams. 3 ties. 2 games to go. pic.twitter.com/SPVpBHJ0Yq

And that difference? It could be the line between a team finally ending its rebuild, or being stuck in it for a few more years.

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