The NBA Draft Lottery is just around the corner, taking place on Monday, May 12, in Chicago, Illinois. The lottery determines the order of the first 14 picks, with teams that finish with the three-worst records having the highest odds (14%) of landing the No. 1 pick. This year’s top contenders include the Utah Jazz, Washington Wizards, and Charlotte Hornets, all guaranteed to win their respective top odds.
The lottery process involves a private drawing in a room with NBA officials, representatives, media, and Ernst & Young. 14 ping-pong balls are used, with 1000 of 1001 possible combinations assigned to participating teams before the drawings. The team that matches the selected combination will receive the No. 1 pick.
The odds for each team are as follows:
* Utah Jazz: 14%
* Washington Wizards: 14%
* Charlotte Hornets: 14%
* New Orleans Pelicans: 12.5%
* Philadelphia 76ers: 10.5%
* Brooklyn Nets: 9%
* Toronto Raptors: 7.5%
* San Antonio Spurs: 6%
* Portland Trail Blazers: 4.5%
* Phoenix Suns: 3%
* Miami Heat: 2%
* Chicago Bulls: 1.5%
* Dallas Mavericks: 1%
* Sacramento Kings: 0.5%
The lottery is just the first step, as teams will then be assigned picks based on their regular-season records in reverse order. The top contenders are currently in play-in tournament spots and could potentially make the playoffs.
Stay tuned for updates and insights into this year’s NBA Draft Lottery.
Source: https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/2025-nba-draft-lottery-date-no-1-odds-and-what-to-know-for-the-cooper-flagg-sweepstakes-210758904.html