I've thought about that before, compensatory picks, but I think forcing players to play out their contracts is the better way to handle it. Teams will quit buying guys out if the market can correct itself some and playoff teams are more likely to spend something to bring in an expiring vet from a lottery team. Once there are two or three guys sort of stuck then I can see things changing because that will encourage other teams to offer up their vets for less rather than buying them out.
Perhaps make buyouts more beneficial to teams and less towards players, like a buyout can be no more than 75% of their guaranteed salary. The team would want to save but the player may not be interested in losing that much money.
Another thing that could be done is allow trade exceptions and midlevel exceptions to be used on waiver wire claims. Now it's only cap space and if you don't have it then you can't claim anyone making over the league minimum. Giving teams more ways to claim guys would keep those players from clearing waivers and signing with 2-3 teams.
Anything that keeps the rich from getting richer. It sucks seeing your team lose a good player in February because they couldn't deal him. Of course they couldn't deal them because the whole league knew that he'd be waived if they waited a week. Like back when the Suns got Greg Monroe for Bledsoe.
