Though it's not a place we normally like to frequent, the Hawks have been in
the lottery several times since it was introduced in 1985. With the
NBA Draft
Lottery scheduled for next Tuesday, Hawks.com takes a look at the team's history
in the event:
For this year's drawing, Atlanta has 250 chances out of 1000 probabilities (25%) to
get the first pick, with a 21.46% chance on getting the second pick and a 17.74%
chance on getting the third pick. Should the Hawks fail to get one of the top
three selections, they cannot drop lower than the fourth pick in the 2005 Draft.
Here are some other Lottery-related notes:
This is the 21st year since the creation of the Draft Lottery in 1985,
and the Hawks have participated in the lottery on nine occasions (including this
year);
The highest Atlanta finish in the lottery came in 2001, when the Hawks placed
third in the process. That pick was traded on draft day to the Memphis Grizzlies
(to consummate the Shareef Abdur-Rahim trade);
Previous Hawks finishes are as follows: 1985 (5th), 1990 (11th), 1992 (10th),
2000 (6th), 2001 (3rd), 2002 (8th), 2003 (8th, pick awarded to Milwaukee), 2004
(6th), and 2005 (???);
The last two teams with the league's worst records Cleveland (2002-03) and
Orlando (2003-04) each ended up winning the rights to select the number one
overall pick;
The NBA Board of Governors approved a modification of the
Lottery system in November of 1993 that, effective with the 1994 NBA Draft
Lottery, increased the chances of the teams with the worst records in the league
winning one of the top three picks in the draft while decreasing the lottery
chances of the teams with the best records. The new system increased the chances
of the team with the worst record drawing the first pick in the draft from 16.7
percent to 25 percent, while decreasing the chances of the team with the best
record among lottery teams from 1.5 percent to 0.5 percent.
Under the system, 14 ping-pong balls numbered 1 through 14 are placed in a drum.
There are 1,001 possible combinations when four balls are drawn out of 14,
without regard to their order of selection. Prior to the Lottery, 1,000
combinations are assigned to the Lottery teams based on their order of finish
during the regular season (Cleveland's pick goes to Charlotte via a previous
trade). Four balls are drawn to the top to determine a four-digit combination.
The team that has been assigned that combination will receive the number one
pick. The four balls are placed back in the drum and the process is repeated to
determine the number two and three picks;
Following are the 13 teams in 2005 NBA Draft Lottery who did not qualify for the
NBA Playoffs 2005. Each team will be assigned a certain number of combinations
out of 1,000. The third column below lists the number of combinations each team
will have in the NBA Draft Lottery. The three columns on the right list the
percent chances that teams have at getting one of the top three picks.
2005 NBA Draft Lottery Probabilities:
| Team |
Record |
Chances |
1st Pick |
2nd Pick |
3rd Pick |
| Atlanta |
13-69 |
250 |
25.00% |
21.46% |
17.74% |
| New Orleans |
18-64 |
178 |
17.80% |
17.36% |
16.46% |
| Charlotte |
18-64 |
177 |
17.70% |
17.29% |
16.42% |
| Utah |
26-56 |
119 |
11.90% |
12.58% |
13.25% |
| Portland |
27-55 |
88 |
8.80% |
9.64% |
10.64% |
| Milwaukee |
30-52 |
63 |
6.30% |
7.09% |
8.09% |
| Toronto |
33-49 |
36 |
3.60% |
4.16% |
4.90% |
| New York |
33-49 |
35 |
3.50% |
4.04% |
4.77% |
| Golden State |
34-48 |
14 |
1.40% |
1.65% |
1.99% |
| LA Lakers |
34-48 |
14 |
1.40% |
1.65% |
1.99% |
| Orlando |
36-46 |
8 |
0.80% |
0.95% |
1.15% |
| LA Clippers |
37-45 |
7 |
0.70% |
0.83% |
1.01% |
| #Charlotte |
18-64 |
6 |
0.60% |
0.71% |
0.87% |
| Minnesota |
42-40 |
5 |
0.50% |
0.59% |
0.72% |
#from Cleveland (42-40)
The event will be televised on ESPN at 8:30 ET, prior to coverage of the
Western Conference final game, from Secaucus, NJ and the NBA Entertainment
Studios. EVP/GM Billy Knight will represent the organization on the podium.
The 2005 NBA Draft is set for Tuesday, June 28 from the Theater in Madison
Square Garden, and it will also be televised by ESPN.
For more Draft Lottery information, please click
here.
