I LOVE that the team has this mentality. As a competitor, it's all you can ask for.
As a fan, I understand the financial landscape of the NBA, and what it takes to be elite. Drafting consistently in the 12-22 range does absolutely NOTHING to get to an elite status. What it does get you, is a bunch of try-hard, role-player type guys that have just enough to be slightly above average, never good enough to eclipse the top tier, never bad enough to get a top 1-4 pick in the draft, where the possibility of selecting a star player is much higher.
I'd never want the players giving less than their best; I would expect the coach, however, to be involved with the long-term health of the team and understand that losing an additional 10-15 games this season would be better in the long run for the organization. I think the FO knows this, it's just a matter of making the moves to ensure it happens. It's Thibs' biggest weakness as a coach, imo, the lack of a big-picture vision. He still approaches things as an asst: grinding every play, every game. He seems to lack a long-term vision, at least from what is publicly displayed--I have no idea how he is in private, obviously.