Amid the NBA Playoffs fell the 2022 NBA Draft Lottery, a night filled with the whirlwinds of excitement, anger, and sadness for several organizations. Although the NBA Draft isn’t until June 23, teams are gearing up to draft potential franchise-altering players now that their picks have been decided.
NBA Draft Lottery Winners
Tuesday saw the Magic come up as big winners, winning the draft lottery and grabbing the No. 1 overall pick in the draft next month. The decision will loom large for Orlando as the draft boasts what is perceived as four elite franchise-level prospects in Paolo Banchero (PF – Duke), Jaden Ivey (PG – Purdue), Chet Holmgren (PF – Gonzaga), and Jabari Smith (PF – Auburn).
The second biggest winner of the lottery was the Oklahoma City Thunder, who came in with a 13.3% chance to pick second overall. With 17 draft picks until 2026 and budding stars in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey, the Thunder are set up for what seems like a decade of dominance if they can find their future standout. That standout is potentially Chet Holmgren, who the Thunder are rumored to be interested in.
NBA Draft Lottery Losers
Despite having winners in the lottery, there will always be losers, which comes the way of both the Blazers and Pacers. As mentioned, the draft is viewed to have just four elite players in the first. To have the Pacers, a bottom-of-the-barrel Eastern Conference team, select sixth, they came out disappointed. Despite this, the draft is finicky, where you can find talent at nearly any selection.
As for the Blazers, tanking in 2021, trading CJ McCollum, and having Lillard continue to break down and age, selecting 7th is less than ideal to start their potential rebuild. If they fail to select an impactful player, they may choose to pair up the seventh overall selection and make a move for a potential second star to pair with Lillard.
Despite the ups and downs, the draft lottery offered us another moment of excitement that should help shape another excellent year of basketball in 2022.
Recap of the Entire 2022 NBA Draft Lottery:
- Orlando Magic
- Oklahoma City Thunder
- Houston Rockets
- Sacramento Kings
- Detroit Pistons
- Indiana Pacers
- Portland Trail Blazers
- New Orleans Pelicans (via Los Angeles Lakers)
- San Antonio Spurs
- Washington Wizards
- New York Knicks
- Oklahoma City Thunder (via Los Angeles Clippers)
- Charlotte Hornets
- Cleveland Cavaliers
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