- If you ask without any background, many people are likely to assume you are just too lazy to do the work yourself.
- If you ask without any background, many people will likely assume you are just too lazy to do the work yourself.
Shouldn't (2) be better than (1)?
I searched for "future tense vs. present tense", but didn't find anything helpful in reference to the posed problem.
Furthermore, I found on grammar.ccc that an 'if + present tense' clause should be followed by a main clause of the form 'will + infinitive/present tense/imperative'; so, at least according to that reliable source, (1) would be wrong.