2025-2026 Tank Race Prediction Contest and Current Results Thread

[NUMBERICA]

Would be awesome if New Orleans and Milwaukee ended with the same record lol (and both behind us).

 

[jazznik]

Our cavalry coming over the hill is Sacramento: they have 6 games against tanking teams over the next month or so and will be gladly gifting them victories. And, of course, the Pacers with 7 upcoming games like this.

 

[jazznik]

The Kings with the starters Sabonis-Hunter-DeRozan-Lavine-Westbrook are tied in the 3rd against the Grizzles playing a bunch of nobodies. Amazing ineptitude.

 

[KqWIN]

Both MEM and SAC are mid game tanking and benching starters to close the game.

 

[Shad]

The Griddles winning is actually good. We can now lose our 3 Pelicans games against them and be only a half game behind. They have to beat someone else right?

 

[fishonjazz]

Our cavalry coming over the hill is Sacramento: they have 6 games against tanking teams over the next month or so and will be gladly gifting them victories. And, of course, the Pacers with 7 upcoming games like this.

And us with 11

 

[sip]

Let's ****ing go Ty Jerome. This dude has been nuclear the 3 games that he has been back leading to 2 huge griz wins for us.

 

[Saint Cy of JFC]

Cross your fingers Indiana decides to play for the 10th slot and win some games. They have 9 games vs tanking team left. Could be huge if they decide to win.

 

[underdog]

Cross your fingers Indiana decides to play for the 10th slot and win some games. They have 9 games vs tanking team left. Could be huge if they decide to win.

Indiana is prepared to win games now. Will they? We'll see. The tanking for the rest of the season will be fascinating.

 

[KqWIN]

This is going to be the tankiest tank race of all time, but think about how great our culture is from waiting to tank. /s

We actually did a pretty good job, I just cannot get over how stupid the non-tank crowd was.

 

[MTS]

This is going to be the tankiest tank race of all time, but think about how great our culture is from waiting to tank. /s

We actually did a pretty good job, I just cannot get over how stupid the non-tank crowd was.

Yeah once Walker went down, there was no longer such thing as a non-tank crowd in this particular season (except maybe TremendousUpside, but his bit is just to disagree with everything the Jazz do.)

There were people who pissed themselves in horror whenever the Jazz won a game, and there were people who told that group to relax, because we're still very much on track to keep our pick, but nobody, not even the people who think tanking is a lame strategy in general, was non-tank this year.

 

[KqWIN]

Yeah once Walker went down, there was no longer such thing as a non-tank crowd in this particular season (except maybe TremendousUpside, but his bit is just to disagree with everything the Jazz do.)

There were people who pissed themselves in horror whenever the Jazz won a game, and there were people who told that group to relax, because we're still very much on track to keep our pick, but nobody, not even the people who think tanking is a lame strategy in general, was non-tank this year.

What I’m specific speaking too are the people who were dying on a hill for dumb things like playing Svi to establish a winning culture or player development strategy. That’s just one example of those endless conversations we’ve had over and over. A couple more L’s could change the tank race, but a couple more W’s is not changing the dynamic of culture or player development in any meaningful way.

And the idea that the tank was “fine” or not was just a dumb concept in the first place. Even if there were no pick protection at all it would be very well worth it simply for the higher odds at top 4.

We were not deciding between a tanking and not tanking team. We were tanking between a tanking team and a team that would take anyways and destroy whatever benefit we were pretending to have by delaying. Thank goodness Nepo was quicker than Ainge to pivot.