NBA Draft Lottery Talk - Hornets win top pick, fix was in

[dockingsched]

The NBA draft lottery is today right before the celtics/heat game. Sam Amick from SI has a nice breakdown if you want an outlook on the draft: LINK


For us though, here's why the lottery matters:

****Brooklyn Nets. The nets have a 9.36% chance of getting the top pick and a 25.19% chance of getting any top 3 pick. This puts them behind 5 other teams in terms of odds. If they don't jump into the top 3, they have to give up their pick to the blazers as part of that terrible pick for gerald wallace trade.

Why does it matter? If the Nets get the top pick, or even a top 3 pick, their odds of landing dwight howard go from close to none to highly probable. Wojo from yahoo reported that the nets would be open to trading the top pick for howard, who deron williams has said is what is needed to keep him there. at the risk of oversimplifying things, if the nets jump into the top 3, the lakers' odds of landing either deron or dwight get put on life support. This alone should make the lottery must watch for any lakers fan.


****New Orleans Hornets. The hornets have two picks. their own pick as the 4th best odds, the wolves pick has the 10th best odds.

Why does it matter? If the hornets win the lottery, you better believe there will be a sh*tstorm of the "fix is in" after the stern veto that crushed many lakers fans, and chances are a bunch of you are going to take part it in. also, i wanted to have a 3rd team in here to make it a nice 3 item list.


****Houston Rockets. The rockets have the smallest chance of all lottery teams of winning any of the top 3 picks. If they jumped into the top 3, we'll know immediately since they should be the 1st envelope pulled out for the 14th pick.

Why does it matter? Pau Gasol going to the Rockets continues to be one of the most talked about scenarios of the off-season, with good reason since he was effectively traded there last yr. If the rockets win a top 3 pick or god forbid the top pick, the market for Pau probably goes in the toilet if not already there since the rockets probably rethink their need for pau (assuming there's still interest). Another POV could be that the #2/#3 pick could come into play for Pau, with the pick going to a 3rd team and some star coming to the lakers cause thats how mitch rolls.



anyway, get your lottery talk on.

[XXIV]

Some very interesting points, especially the Rockets one. Do you think the Lakers will try dealing Pau during the draft or after it?

[dockingsched]

try? i'm sure they'll be working the phones, we'll probably here a bunch of crazy rumors. i'm guessing he doesn't get traded til july/august when the new free agency period kicks off and pieces start to fall into place.

[Jetset]

It'll be like it was last year, rumors here and there leading up to the draft regarding Gasol. But I'm not expecting a trade on draft night.

[Gek]

dock coming through on the effort. good work bro.

[dockingsched]

here we go!!

[Jetset]

dan gilbert brought his kid again, they're going to win the top pick

[dockingsched]

since when do possible draftees show up to the lottery? don't recall that

[Jetset]

i believe they did it last year with irving and others

[dockingsched]

just remembered taht the warriors lose their pick if they get jumped by anyone behind em. they're sitting at number 7 and their pick is top 7 protected. im cheering for that jump now. go raptors!

[Jetset]

i feel like my team actually has a ping pong ball in this

[dockingsched]

kings are #5, hope they don't win, davis/cousins would be pretty good.

[Jetset]

i aint even scared. any team but brooklyn in the top 3 and i'm not bothered

[Jetset]

poor rox

[dockingsched]

no jump for the rockets.

[snaquille oatmeal]

we got the last pick so LOL I don't care

[dockingsched]

damn, no one jumping.

[Jetset]

YES

[dockingsched]

nets lost their pick!!!


wooo hoooo!!!

[Jetset]

this is really weird