When the pingpong balls fall into place at the 2015 NBA Draft Lottery on Tuesday night, 13 teams will be left disappointed that they didn't land the No. 1 pick.
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That's the reality of the lottery system - not even finishing dead last or tanking for multiple seasons assures you the first pick. The 2015 draft class is solid through the lottery and even into the early 20s, so teams that miss out on a top-three selection shouldn't get too disappointed.
And NBA fans in general shouldn't be disappointed by any outcome. The lottery invites entropy, and chaos ahead of draft time is a great deal of fun. Plus, in a draft with several top prospects and a handful of interesting teams in the lottery, there's really no bad outcome from a league-wide perspective.
Here's a reason to be excited in the event each team wins the No. 1 pick.
Oklahoma City Thunder, No. 14, 0.5% chance
This is probably the easiest one. Adding a top prospect to a Kevin Durant-Russell Westbrook-Serge Ibaka core that otherwise doesn't have a great deal of flexibility to improve? Yeah, sign us up. There's also a strong chance that the Thunder would dangle the pick for more immediate help in a push to keep Durant, which would add to the high drama.
Phoenix Suns, No. 13, 0.6% chance
The Suns' core and system are fun, but their roster doesn't appear to have a player with the upside that can push them from Western Conference also-ran to playoff threat. Adding an elite center could slow the offense down some, but would raise the team's ceiling appreciably. And this is the only landing spot where the long-term health of a 7-footer would be certain.
Utah Jazz, No. 12, 0.7% chance
The locale isn't flashy, but the Jazz have a fun roster with good pieces at each position. With Rudy Gobert emerging as an ace at center, the Jazz would be one of the few teams who would take a long look at Emmanuel Mudiay or D'Angelo Russell at No. 1, making the team that lands the No. 2 pick a winner, as well.
Indiana Pacers, No. 11, 0.8% chance
Cue the Roy Hibbert trade sweepstakes if the Pacers land the top pick. It's possible they'd shop a lot of pieces, actually, as the top pick could shift the team's timeline back a year or so - Paul George just turned 25 and a quick dip to retool with youth around George and the No. 1 pick wouldn't be the worst idea.
Miami Heat, No. 10, 1.1% chance
OK, the Heat don't necessarily deserve a break, not with the success they've had over the last half-decade. But adding the top pick to the established Chris Bosh-Dwyane Wade (and likely Goran Dragic) core would be karmic payback for Bosh's scary medical issue, and it could make the Heat an exciting and climactic foil to LeBron James next season.
Charlotte Hornets, No. 9, 1.7% chance
Head coach Steve Clifford has crafted an impressive defense with Al Jefferson as his center. Al Jefferson. Give Clifford a player like Karl-Anthony Towns in the middle, instead, and the Hornets may not allow a bucket again.
Detroit Pistons, No. 8, 2.8% chance
Stan Van Gundy has already shown he cares little for convention, paying Josh Smith for the next several seasons to play for someone else. With his affinity for shooting, Andre Drummond already on the roster and the team having given up assets for restricted free agent Reggie Jackson, the Pistons would be a serious wildcard with the top pick.
Denver Nuggets, No. 7, 4.3% chance
This may be the toughest one to justify. The Nuggets are in disarray and it's tough to get a feel for who they want to keep on the roster, let alone who their next head coach may be. Whoever gets the gig behind the bench would have a very nice starting point on at least one end of the floor, and which player they land could dictate what happens with the rest of the roster.
Sacramento Kings, No. 6, 6.3% chance
Vivek Ranadive with the No. 1 pick, are you kidding? This is the owner who crowd-sourced help for last year's pick and wants to experiment with playing 4-on-5 defense to get an edge in transition. Vlade Divac is calling DeMarcus Cousins untouchable, so they may not draft a center at No. 1. Or they might. Nobody would have any idea.
Orlando Magic, No. 5, 8.8% chance
A team with plenty of somewhat ill-fitting, but intriguing, young pieces adding one more may be a bit much on one roster, but what if the team's new head coach, whoever he may be, decided to eschew any semblance of offensive fit for an incredible defense? Elfrid Payton, Victor Oladipo, Aaron Gordon and Towns would be quite a starting point for such a strategy.
Los Angeles Lakers, No. 4, 11.9% chance
Remember what Michael Jordan did to Kwame Brown? Imagine what Kobe Bryant, ostensibly in his last season and already stuck with Byron Scott and Nick Young, would do to a No. 1 pick if he struggled. Alternatively, the post-Bryant Lakers would have plenty of cap flexibility, Jordan Clarkson, Julius Randle and the top pick to kick off the next era in Hollywood.
Philadelphia 76ers, No. 3, 15.6% chance
They already have Nerlens Noel and Joel Embiid. Would they dare draft another center? Would they trade down? Would they trade Noel or Embiid? Not only is there all the intrigue of what would happen if they landed the top pick, there's also a 1-in-357 chance they end up with the first, sixth and 11th pick. It's Sam Hinkie's world, homie, you just live here.
New York Knicks, No. 2, 19.9% chance
The immense pressure of playing in the Mecca of Basketbal, where success has been but an idea for some time, alongside a superstar nearing the end of his prime in Carmelo Anthony, running a bastardized version of the triangle under Phil Jackson and Derek Fisher. There's no way this works out poorly, right? At the very least, there's no way it's not plenty of fun to watch from afar.
Minnesota Timberwolves, No. 1, 25% chance
The last three No. 1 picks all playing on the same team in Anthony Bennett, Andrew Wiggins and this year's top pick. Maybe the Wolves would go way off-board to grab Trey Lyles and make it three No. 1 Canadians on the same squad. The more likely scenario sees them nab Towns, creating a formidable Ricky Rubio-Wiggins-Towns defensive triumvirate from which to build.
