A wheel system doesn't favor large market teams at all. It is completely fair and upfront. It favors SMART teams. Take a look at Brooklyn. They traded away Damion Lilliard, Derrick Favors, Enes Kanter and a piece that was used to get Trey Burke. The wheel system would still screw that team over. Same as New York.
What the wheel system does do, is it allows SMART teams to continue to reload, and small market teams to have access to higher rated players.
Take a look at the Jazz. Once they had Stockton and Malone, they were done. No more high draft picks, no more big FA acquisitions. The Jazz were screwed with no way to get better. They were a WCF team with no real hope to improve. Until they were lucky enough to steal Hornacek from Philly because Philly was too dumb to have him play SG.
Then, look at the Jazz again. They were able to draft Deron and sign Boozer, but then, once again, they were stuck. No way to get better. No way to get that guy to put them over the hump.
A wheel system allows SMART teams to get better. Imagine if Utah could have had Stockton and Malone and had a top 5 pick in the mid-90's. Wow. Think of it this way: A wheel system would allow Utah to do what SA did when they tanked for Duncan, without ever having to tank.
You mentioned that Miami could go over the cap to resign Wade and Bosh and you are correct. BUT, Miami is a small market team, and they do not have the TV deals that LA, CHI, NY, BOS do. They CAN'T go over the cap to keep those two. The tax penalties are too harsh for them. So, once every 29 years, there might be a chance that a team with a Jordan or LeBron would get the #1 pick. Big deal. What if you have LeBron on your team? Or what if you have Stockton or Malone and can add a #1 pick? WOW. Utah would NEVER get that shot.
A perfect example of this is OKC. They are the new Stockton and Malone. They are SCREWED. Especially when Wiggins/Embiid/Parker ends up in LA. Then next year Love ends up in LA. LA can always add talent. OKC can't. They have peaked and they now have NO way to get better. They can't attract a big time FA or afford them. IF they had a wheeled draft, and this fall they had the #5 pick, then there would be a chance they could compete with LA.
Yup, it sucks in a down year, and it would suck to get the #1 pick in that year (look at us and Kanter) but it would happen to everyone and the bad luck part is still there now.
Another FANTASTIC thing about the wheel, is that you know what you are trading for. We traded Deron for Favors (player), Harris (player) and two first round picks. One wasn't protected, ended up being #5 and won the #3 spot in the lottery. The other is protected and we will get this year. It will either be GS's first round pick, or if that picks fall under its protection, it will be two second round picks.
Now, Utah essentially traded Deron for Favors and the two picks. Those two picks could have been anywhere from the #1 pick to two second round picks. That is quite a risk the Jazz took in taking those picks. What happens if Utah traded Deron, NJ made the playoffs and GS was a top 6 pick this year? Then we traded Deron for Favors and crap. Luckily, we have gotten better than that, BUT how much better would it be for a small market team if they knew ahead of time what those picks were?
A lot better. A lot less risk for that small market team. Instead of maybe getting Harrison Barnes a couple years ago, we would know that we are getting the #8 pick. Instead of trading Deron for Favors and a first round pick and maybe two second round picks, we could have traded Deron for a #3 pick and a #8 pick. MUCH BETTER.
The wheel system is 100% fair for ALL teams with incoming players, and would completely help out SMART teams.
Until someone can show me a system that would allow Utah with Stockton and Malone to add Grant Hill, or OKC to add Parker to Durrant and Westbrook, the system isn't as good.
The reason why is because LA, BOS, NY, CHI, Brooklyn can always add superstars if they are smart. It's impossible for a small market team to do so without a wheel system.
If you can get past the initial, unlikely "what-if's" (and Miami getting better isn't a horrible "what-if". They are small market team. We WANT them to succeed.), then a wheel system just makes too much sense. The problem is, people don't want a fair chance to compete, they just want a way to hurt those more successful or in better situations than they are in.
Big markets always have unfair advantages when it comes to access to talent. A wheel system gives small market teams a way to have access to top talent as well.
