NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will preside over the NBA draft lottery on Tuesday night in Chicago. (Michael Conroy/Associated Press)
The NBA will select the order of its June draft by drawing lots on Tuesday night in Chicago among the 14 teams that failed to make the postseason or traded away their draft picks.
Phoenix, following a 21-61 finish, has the best chance at the No. 1 pick at 25 percent. Memphis, at 22-60, is not far behind at 19.9 percent, with Dallas (24-58) third at 13.8 percent.
But that all comes down to the fate of the bouncing ping-pong balls and which one Commissioner Adam Silver grabs first. The Cavaliers, and either the 76ers or Celtics, the top teams in the Eastern Conference, have lottery picks, too, due to trades. The Cavaliers have a chance to get help for LeBron James — or plan for his departure — with a pick via the Brooklyn Nets as part of their haul for trading Kyrie Irving. Meanwhile, either the Sixers or Celtics will benefit from the Lakers sending out a first-rounder for Steve Nash six years ago — the bill for which is finally coming due.
Here’s everything you need to know about tonight’s draft lottery:
When: 7:30 p.m.
How to watch/stream: ESPN or the ESPN app
Best odds: Phoenix (25 percent), Memphis (19.9 percent), Dallas (13.8 percent)
Worst odds: Detroit (0.7 percent), Los Angeles Clippers (0.6 percent), Denver (0.5 percent)
Top prospects: Luka Doncic, G, Slovenia | DeAndre Ayton, C, Arizona | Jaren Jackson Jr., F, Michigan State | Marvin Bagley III, F, Duke | Mohamed Bamba, C, Texas | Trae Young, G, Oklahoma | Michael Porter Jr., G/F, Missouri
What’s at stake for each team?
Phoenix Suns: Phoenix has never picked first, including when it lost the most painful coin flip in basketball history to the Milwaukee Bucks for the right to draft Lew Alcindor (later Kareem-Abdul Jabbar). This year, though, the Suns have the best odds of winning the lottery, a fine year to buck that trend. The No. 1 pick would allow the Suns to draft either Arizona center DeAndre Ayton or Slovenian wunderkind Luka Doncic. Either would be welcome under new Coach Igor Kokoskov and alongside guard Devin Booker.
Memphis Grizzlies: After an atrocious season, a lottery win would give the Grizzlies a chance to inject a premium young talent onto a veteran-laden team led by Marc Gasol and Mike Conley. The Grizzlies look like they’ve reached the end of what has been a terrific run, but the right young player could potentially allow them to extend it by a few years or more.
Dallas Mavericks: Dallas openly committed to finishing with the best draft pick possible after spending the past several years seeking a veteran talent to pair with Hall of Famer Dirk Nowitzki. Point guard Dennis Smith was a strong selection with the ninth pick last year; another hit this year could finally give Dallas the bridge to its post-Nowitzki future.
Atlanta Hawks: General Manager Travis Schlenk committed to a full rebuild when taking over a year ago, and hiring Lloyd Pierce — known for his player development skills — as his head coach last week. That plan, though, will only work if Atlanta gets its picks right. Winning the lottery in a draft in which the Hawks have four picks inside the top 33 would be a great place to start.
Orlando Magic: Since trading Dwight Howard in August of 2012, the Magic have been on a treadmill of mediocrity, failing to make the playoffs in each of the past six seasons. Three coaches and a new front office later, the Magic hope Tuesday is the start of a new and more successful era in Central Florida.
Chicago Bulls: A decade ago, the Bulls jumped up to win the lottery and the chance to get hometown hero Derrick Rose. A lot has changed since then, but now, with the lottery site moving from New York to Chicago, the Bulls will be hoping the change in location provides enough luck for them to add another high draft pick to pair with second-year forward Lauri Markkanen.
Sacramento Kings: With the Minnesota Timberwolves making the playoffs this year, Sacramento’s streak of 12 straight years without a postseason appearance is the new leader among NBA teams. Another team that’s never won the lottery, Sacramento could desperately use some ping-pong balls bouncing their way.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Want to bet on a long shot? Cleveland winning, with Brooklyn’s pick, is a good bet. Three of the last four times the Cavaliers have been here (either with their own pick or someone else’s), they’ve won it. That would certainly come in handy for Cleveland, which would love a top three pick to equal either a prime young talent or a trade asset that can be used to lure more veteran help for LeBron James.
Brooklyn Nets: This year finally marks the end of the five years of misery Nets fans have suffered through since trading the rights to four picks for Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett in 2013. All it has resulted in is watching the Celtics load up with assets just up the coast, while the Nets have been stuck in a rebuild that can’t get off the ground. The Cavaliers’ draft slot will be the final feeling of pain.
New York Knicks: With David Fizdale now coaching and a new front office firmly in place, the Knicks — for the first time in forever — seem committed to a patient, long-term approach. Perhaps they will be rewarded with some lottery luck for the first time since winning the first one ever, and the right to draft Patrick Ewing, in 1985.
Philadelphia 76ers: Things are looking up in Philadelphia, thanks to Ben Simmons, Joel Embiid and Dario Saric. After trading up to get Markelle Fultz last year, Philadelphia will hope for more luck, or, at worst, to stay at No. 10 and draft another player who can step in and help right away.
Los Angeles Lakers: That the Lakers owe this year’s pick to the Sixers is remarkable, given that it was only top-three protected each of the past three years because of the ill-fated Steve Nash trade from six years ago and the Lakers managed to finish with the second pick three years running. Now that it’s unprotected, there’s no such luck this time.
Charlotte Hornets: The man who made that ill-fated Nash trade, Mitch Kupchak, is now running the Hornets, who fired their general manager (Rich Cho) and coach (Steve Clifford). With little to no chance of jumping up from 11th, a roster full of bad contracts and Kemba Walker one year from free agency, this is as bad a situation as there is in the NBA.
Los Angeles Clippers: The Clippers probably won’t jump up from the 12th and 13th picks, but having both should allow them to either begin retooling their roster with a couple immediate contributors, or offer potential chips in a trade for Kawhi Leonard if the San Antonio Spurs choose to go that route.
Detroit Pistons: Having moved on from the Stan Van Gundy last week, it would be fitting if the final act from his tenure — the Blake Griffin trade — resulted in the Pistons somehow jumping up from No. 12, which would then allow them to keep their top-four protected pick. The chances of that happening, though, are minimal.
Denver Nuggets: There’s virtually no possibility of Denver moving up, meaning it will have the 14th pick to add to its young core. Denver will undoubtedly be sitting on the lottery stage thinking about last year’s draft, when it traded out of 13th and missed a chance to take Donovan Mitchell. Oops.
Fun stuff:
Look out for mentions of special good luck charms representatives from lottery teams bring with them to the event Tuesday night. The Magic’s co-founder, for example, will carry a “Lil Penny” doll with him on stage. What is a “Lil Penny” doll, you ask? It’s a toy fashioned after former Magic star and new Memphis Tigers Coach Penny Hardaway, and once voiced by Chris Rock.
It looks something like this:
The last time the Magic beat the odds to grab to No. 1 overall pick was in 1993, when the team won with a 1.52-percent chance at the top choice, and selected Chris Webber to pair with Shaquille O’Neal. Orlando traded Webber later that night for the No. 3 pick and three future first rounders. That No. 3 pick was Penny Hardaway, who made a lot more sense as an O’Neal running mate.
In 2010, the Wizards had a 10.3-percent chance to win the draft lottery, and Irene Pollin, in one of her last official acts as the team’s owner, represented the franchise while wearing her late husband’s 1978 Washington Bullets NBA championship ring. Washington won the lottery and used the pick to select John Wall.
The following year, Wall attended the lottery as the Wizards’ representative and vowed to wear, or at least carry, the gold jacket Irene Pollin wore the year before.
Further reading:
Traditional big men, nearly extinct in the NBA, nevertheless pack the 2018 draft class
Read up on: DeAndre Ayton | Luka Doncic | Marvin Bagley III | Michael Porter Jr.
For Michael Porter Jr. and Mohamed Bamba, mock drafts are part of March Madness
Local prospects declared for the draft: Justin Jackson | Bruno Fernando | Kevin Huerter | Marcus Derrickson | Jesse Govan
The Philadelphia 76ers should go after Paul George, not LeBron James
The Miami Heat bet big on Hassan Whiteside. It appears they made a mistake. Now what?
Will DeMarcus Cousins be back with the New Orleans Pelicans?
After first-round sweep, Blazers’ next steps could include trading away their stars
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