The race is on. For some NBA teams, it never seems to stop.
In the upside-down world that is the bottom of the league standings, it's good to be bad. Each loss theoretically brings a bottom feeder one step closer to its savior by improving its odds of hitting the draft-lottery jackpot.
Having the highest odds guarantees nothing, as history has proved again and again. The Cleveland Cavaliers have won three of the last four draft lotteries despite never owning the league's worst record during that stretch. The team with the best lottery odds hasn't secured the top pick since the Orlando Magic "won" it in 2004.
This is a risky game to play, but the potential reward can make it worth the gamble. For this season's downtrodden teams, a possible avenue to a franchise-caliber big like Duke's Jahlil Okafor or Kentucky's Karl Towns is one worth exploring.
Several clubs have embraced the loss column, some more openly than others. As a result, there are six teams holding a winning percentage below. 350—and owning better than a 5 percent chance of landing the top selection, per Tankathon.com.
We're handicapping those six on ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Zach Buckley
Handicapping the Race for the 2015 No. 1 NBA Draft Pick
March 3rd, 2015 by Zach Buckley Leave a reply »
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