Yeah, upper levels will see semi-active managers place 9-11 or so. The game is really a lot different at higher levels than in the beginning, and Nordeus really should tailor the game experience differently for both, but they insist on not doing that.
And yeah, cash rewards are not going to motivate managers. Teams end up basically being giant cash generators, and you can't buy anything with just cash, so tournaments that you can win tokens in are prioritized. If there was a pack prize with boosters and tokens, you'd see a different situation. Maybe if you could exchange cash for boosters or tokens, it would be different.