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We previously had done the math but the NBA and the NBA Development league made it official on Monday when they announced team affiliates for the 2014-15 season. The D-League sports 18 teams total and 17 of them will have a one-to-one affiliation which is an all-time high for the league. While this is great news for the league it isn't as good a situation for the teams that don't have a single affiliation. The Atlanta Hawks for example will be one of 13 teams that will share affiliation with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.
Obviously that is a less than ideal situation and could introduce some real problems for some teams. Only four players can be assigned to one D-League club at a time and no more than two are allowed per position. There is a work around but it also isn't ideal. SB Nation's Mike Prada explains:
Step 1 will be trying to find a single-affiliate team actually willing to accommodate that player. If the league and team can agree on a specific club, he'll go there. But what if that doesn't happen? Per the NBA's release:
If no singly-affiliated NBA D-League team is willing to accept the assigned player, he will be assigned to one of the non-NBA-owned single affiliate teams pursuant to a lottery.
Nine teams qualify: Bakersfield (Suns), Erie (Magic), Idaho (Jazz), Iowa (Grizzlies), Grand Rapids (Pistons), Maine (Celtics), Reno (Kings), Rio Grande Valley (Rockets) and Sioux Falls (Heat). Those nine teams may end up being stuck with someone else's prospect because there's not enough room on Fort Wayne.
The Hawks have been a team that have utilized the D-League over the last couple of seasons to find minutes for guys like John Jenkins, Mike Scott and Dennis Schröder. Given these parameters this season the timing may have to be perfect.
The D-League continues to evolve nicely and some teams are seeing a great benefit. However, it won't find its peak usefulness until every team has a one-to-one affiliation whether that is team owned or a hybrid situation.