Report: 76ers want to delay proposed changes to lottery system

With an official proposal to change the NBA's draft lottery system submitted at league meetings in Las Vegas two weeks ago, at least one team is upset about the expeditious nature with which the long-discussed reform is moving forward.

The Philadelphia 76ers, perhaps the foremost example of why the league wants to tackle the lottery system, are objecting to immediate changes, according to a report from ESPN's Brian Windhorst.

From the report:

The NBA is pushing toward changes to the draft lottery system by next season but is facing a strong objection from the Philadelphia 76ers, the franchise that could suffer the most from it, multiple sources told ESPN.com.
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Though there are several facets and the proposals haven't been finalized, essentially the goal of commissioner Adam Silver is to balance out the lottery odds so the worst team or teams wouldn't have the highest chances of landing the top pick, sources said.
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The rough draft of this plan was met with opposition by 76ers management, who are in the midst of a multiseason rebuilding project that is depending on a high pick next year.

The 76ers' complaint would make some sense, as they're currently built - and in the midst of a multi-year plan - based around the existing rules. 

Considering they used their two lottery picks this year on players in Joel Embiid (injury) and Dario Saric (overseas) who may not contribute, it seems likely they'll accept being bad once again in 2014-15. The fact that they're also below the league's salary floor is a striking indicator that they don't plan to compete, with over $30 million in available cap space going to waste.

While the 76ers may be the unfortunate victim with lottery changes, they're also one of the driving forces behind it, with Windhorst reporting that the league feels Philadelphia tanking has "caused a drag on revenues in one of the league's largest markets" and "has upset some fellow teams."

The timeline moving forward is unclear, but one would think the league wants to have any changes in place by the beginning of the season. Not that it will matter for the 76ers, as it's probably much too late to change the strategy at this point.