Tampering in the NBA refers to the act of a teams representatives speaking to players on rival teams to attempt to lure them to join their team. This includes publicly showing interest in acquiring the player or approaching his agent about a possible trade. The NBAs tampering rules state that any member of an organization, including coaches, players, executives, or owners, cannot speak to a player on another team with the intention of luring them to join their team. The penalty for tampering can involve a variety of punishments, including fines, loss of draft picks, trades being reversed, and free agent signings being voided. A team official, if found guilty, can be fined up to $10 million while an active player can be suspended from games.

Tampering is common in the NBA, with teams frequently breaking the rules in their attempts to contact players. The NBA has attempted to halt tampering in the league, but like with other rules, several NBA teams tend to find ways to get away with their actions and not get hurt. Tampering is not especially well understood amongst fans and media alike, yet it is clearly defined. The consequences of tampering aren’t major enough to stop teams from doing it, so franchises continue to approach players, keep fans on their toes, and preserve the excitement of the game.

Tampering is bad because it gives an unfair advantage to a team that negotiated ahead of time. It can also lead to the possibility of collusion of players and teams to circumvent the cap. However, tampering rules are rarely enforced, and teams have almost never been fined in the millions. The most extreme penalty in recent memory is when the LA Lakers were fined $500,000 for VP Rob Pelinka talking to Paul Georges representatives back when the All-Star was still under contract with the Indiana Pacers.