The Washington Wizards had the worst record in the NBA and the highest odds in the lottery, and for the first time in three years the team with the most ping-pong balls actually got the number one pick. Front Office Sports reporter Colin Salao was in the room at Navy Pier in Chicago when it happened, and the atmosphere before that announcement is worth hearing about firsthand.
Washington now picks first in a draft headlined by AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, and Cameron Boozer, and there are already reports the Wizards could trade down. Meanwhile the Indiana Pacers held a 14 percent chance at a top four pick, needed it to keep it out of the Clippers’ hands, and came away with nothing. Kevin Pritchard has already apologized to fans. The ripple effects of that one result could reshape both franchises for years. The NBA is now in the final stages of redesigning the entire draft lottery format to stop teams from tanking.
The proposed 3-2-1 system would add teams and punish the very worst records with lower odds, not higher ones. And underneath all of it, there is the question that never really goes away: Does the NBA even need a lottery at all, and should the worst team just get the best pick the way the NFL does?
