NBA: Five Takeaways from the Draft Lottery and How it will Impact the NBA Offseason
by Sam Cox
It’s too early to make NBA picks for the 2025-26 season, but Monday night’s draft lottery produced several storylines that will run through next season and beyond.
The Dallas Mavericks, after missing the playoffs and watching franchise icon Luka Dončić star in the purple and gold of the Los Angeles Lakers, got some long-overdue luck, which might finally take some of the pressure off Nico Harrison.
Already armed with the future face of the league in Victor Wembanyama, the San Antonio Spurs leapt to second in a loaded draft, while the Philadelphia 76ers can rewarded for their injury-ridden, tank-heavy 2024-25 by moving up to third.
Draft Lottery Outcome
- Mavericks
- Spurs
- 76ers
- Hornets
- Jazz
- Wizards
- Pelicans
- Nets
- Raptors
- Rockets (Via Suns)
- Trail Blazers
- Bulls
- Hawks (Via Kings)
- Spurs
Mavericks Fans Can Finally Celebrate
The Mavericks entered Monday’s lottery with a 1.8% chance of landing the first overall pick. Following a painful few months for Mavs fans, they finally have something to be happy about after seeing their franchise star get traded away and witnessing Kyrie Irving suffer a season-ending injury.
Cooper Flagg will be swapping the blue of Duke for the blue of the Mavs.
With Flagg, Anthony Davis, Max Christie, and Klay Thompson, maybe Dallas has a framework to be a competitive team in the hope Irving is healthy before the end of next season.
Surely Harrison won’t dare to trade the first overall pick with how great Flagg is expected to be. He could, however, look to deal Daniel Gafford or Dereck Lively II during the offseason.
Rebalances Giannis Sweepstakes
The Spurs and Houston Rockets – already two of the most-speculated suitors for Giannis Antetokounmpo – were featured in the lottery. San Antonio jumped to second overall, which pairs nicely with the 14th pick. Houston didn’t enjoy the same good fortune and will pick 10th.
Milwaukee would likely be ecstatic to get Dylan Harper as the centerpiece in a Giannis trade. It gives the Spurs even more leverage in negotiations and may enable them to keep hold of Stephon Castle and/or Devin Vassell.
San Antonio’s lottery luck could also force the Rockets to be more aggressive when choosing which of their young players to include.
Morey Armed for Big Move
Daryl Morey didn’t get to celebrate a lottery win, but the 76ers’ lost 2024-25 regular season (and months of tanking) was still rewarded with the third selection in this summer’s draft.
This opens further doors for Morey, whether he’s looking to build around his pre-established Big Three or considering a blockbuster trade involving Joel Embiid or Paul George.
Philly has hit on Tyrese Maxey and Jared McCain in the Morey era. Ace Bailey is potentially a great fit on the wing next to Embiid and Maxey, or Morey could look to trade down and acquire further win-now pieces.
League’s Worst Teams Left Out
Flattening the lottery odds was meant to curb tanking. It’s up for debate whether that has worked. The new odds have certainly led to more teams jumping up the draft order in the lottery, and this edition was no exception.
The Charlotte Hornets, New Orleans Pelicans, Washington Wizards, and Utah Jazz had the four worst records in the regular season. None are picking in the top three. The Pels lost 61 games and will pick seventh.
Does this incentivize one of the quartet to try and trade up? Does it deter them from tanking for another season and lead to some misjudged, win-now moves this summer?
It creates more room to debate whether the Hornets should trade LaMelo Ball or where the Pelicans could send Zion Williamson. Perhaps their respective front offices are confident they can land a franchise player at their current spots, but they should surely investigate what the trade market looks like.
No Hope Nets
The Brooklyn Nets lost 56 games and will pick eighth. It was a worst-possible outcome for Brooklyn, which has no long-term foundational pieces, and decided not to trade Cam Johnson at the deadline.
Nic Claxton and Johnson should be dealt this summer. Using the eighth pick to swing a big trade (perhaps for Giannis) would be a premature move for a team that’s a long, long way from contending even in a weak Eastern Conference.
