lottery

Jim Eichenhofer

With just a 1-in-25 chance of keeping the team’s first-round pick during Tuesday’s NBA Draft Lottery, it came as little surprise that the New Orleans Pelicans will convey that selection to the Sacramento Kings, the final piece of the DeMarcus Cousins blockbuster trade from three months ago.

Based on the outcome of the lottery, Sacramento will take over New Orleans’ spot in the first round of the June 22 draft; the Kings will pick No. 10 overall. That was the Pelicans’ pre-lottery slot, after finishing the 2016-17 regular season at 34-48.

New Orleans entered the lottery with a 4.0 percent chance of earning a top-three pick, including a 1.1 percent chance of moving all the way up to the No. 1 choice.

Beyond the Pelicans’ fortunes, a look at some of the other biggest winners and losers from Tuesday’s lottery:

Los Angeles averted what would’ve been a bona fide catastrophe, keeping its pick and also moving up one spot to No. 2 overall. In a worst-case scenario, the Lakers could have lost this year’s first-rounder, as well as the one in 2019.

Boston became the first team in roughly three decades to own the No. 1 overall pick and still be playing in the conference finals. The Celtics will have their choice from a draft class many are calling one of the most talented over the past decade-ish.

Just about all you could ask for from a Sacramento perspective. The Kings took over the Pelicans’ pick, while also moving up to No. 5 by virtue of a pick-swap with Philadelphia. As a result, Sacramento is the only club with a pair of top-10 selections.

The West has objectively been better than the East for a generation. This year’s lottery results probably won’t help change that. Sure, East teams earned picks 1 and 3, but West squads garnered four of the top seven choices and six of the top 10.

Phoenix was essentially the only lottery participant among the top three to lose ground Tuesday, slipping from a pre-lottery slot of No. 2 to the fourth pick. 

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Lottery outcome means New Orleans’ first-round pick goes to Sacramento

Pelicans.com

Today's lineup presented by ABC Insurance Agencies includes Pelicans.com writer Jim Eichenhofer as we discuss the Pelicans odds in Tuesday's NBA Draft Lottery.

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Black and Blue Report presented by ABC Insurance Agencies: NBA Draft Lottery Edition

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Flashback: 2012 NBA Draft Lottery

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Pelicans at the 2016 NBA Lottery

NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Pelicans received the sixth overall selection in the upcoming NBA Draft, as determined by the 2016 NBA Draft Lottery, which took place earlier this evening in New York.

The pick is the first lottery selection for the Pelicans since 2013, when New Orleans selected Nerlens Noel with the sixth overall selection. It is the second time in franchise history New Orleans has netted the sixth overall pick, the third highest draft position in team history.

Entering the lottery, New Orleans was slotted sixth, with a 43.9 percent chance of landing the pick.

Additionally, the Pelicans currently hold two second round draft picks – the 39th (from Denver via Philadelphia) and 40th (from Sacramento) overall selections.

Representing the Pelicans at the lottery were Head Coach Alvin Gentry and General Manager Dell Demps.

The 2016 NBA Draft will be held on Thursday, June 23 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

*Draft rights traded to Oklahoma City along with Morris Peterson in exchange for draft rights to Craig Brackins and Quincy Pondexter
**Draft rights traded to Philadelphia in exchange for Jrue Holiday and the rights to Pierre Jackson

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Pelicans to Pick Sixth in 2016 NBA Draft

NEW ORLEANS – The New Orleans Pelicans will participate in the 2016 NBA Draft Lottery on Tuesday, May 17 to determine where they will pick in the first round of the upcoming NBA Draft. The event will be televised on ESPN beginning at approximately 7:00 p.m. CST from the New York Hilton Midtown in Manhattan.

Entering the lottery, the Pelicans hold their own selection, which is slotted sixth (43.9 percent). New Orleans has a 6.3 percent chance of landing the number one overall pick, a 7.1 percent chance of landing the second overall pick and an 8.1 percent chance of landing the third overall pick. This will be the first time the Pelicans have held a lottery selection since 2013.

Should the Pelicans secure the number one overall selection in the draft lottery, Head Coach Alvin Gentry will be available to the media via conference call from New York. Further details regarding the call will be sent in a separate announcement.

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Pelicans to Participate in 2016 NBA Draft Lottery

The New Orleans Pelicans knew that the only way they would keep their 2014 first-round pick was to finish in the top three of the draft lottery. It didn't happen.

When NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum opened the envelopes Tuesday in New York City, the 76ers' logo came up at No. 10, meaning the Pelicans pick will be conveyed to Philadelphia. As part of the Jrue Holiday trade last summer, the pick was top-five protected, but the Pelicans did not move up in Tuesday's lottery.

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Philadelphia lands Pelicans' pick at lottery

Two years ago, despite holding just 13.7 percent odds, New Orleans was the big winner of the 2012 NBA draft lottery, resulting in the selection of No. 1 pick Anthony Davis. The power forward from Kentucky has quickly proven to be a franchise player, having made his All-Star debut in February.

This spring, the Pelicans’ odds of winning the May 20 draft lottery are far worse, at just 1.1 percent, but that’s not necessarily the most important detail for fans to know. Of greater significance is that New Orleans has a 4.0 percent chance of finishing in the top three of the lottery, which is the only way the Pelicans can keep their 2014 first-round pick. In addition to the 1.1 percent chance of winning, based on the lottery system they have a 1.3 percent chance of the No. 2 pick and 1.6 percent odds of earning the No. 3 choice.

As part of last year’s trade to acquire All-Star point guard Jrue Holiday, the Pelicans dealt their 2014 first-round pick to the Philadelphia 76ers, but with the caveat that it is top-five protected. That means that if the Pelicans’ pick lands anywhere in the top five, they get to keep it. If not, the pick is conveyed to Philadelphia.

Based on the NBA’s lottery system, in which picks 4-14 are determined by reverse order of winning percentage, it is impossible for the Pelicans to earn either the fourth or fifth pick, meaning they must vault into the top three. New Orleans went 34-48 during the 2013-14 regular season, giving it the league’s 10th-worst record. As a result, the Pelicans can only finish first, second, third, 10th, 11th, 12th or 13th at the New York City-hosted lottery. That means that if the Pelicans’ pick is conveyed to Philadelphia, the 76ers can only choose 10th, 11th, 12th or 13th.

Should the Pelicans keep their 2014 first-rounder, the top-five protection carries over to 2015 (and every year through 2019 if the 76ers still have not been conveyed the pick). If the 76ers haven’t been conveyed a first-round pick from the Pelicans after the 2019 draft, it automatically becomes a second-round pick in 2020.

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Pelicans have 4 percent chance of keeping first-round pick

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