2012 NBA Draft Order: Lottery Teams That Can't Afford to Miss on Draft Day

With the 2012 NBA playoffs in full swing, the talk for the teams that missed out on the postseason has turned to the draft and which prospects they need.

While there are many lottery teams in for long rebuilding processes, other teams have the chance to make an amazing pick in 2012 and build on it immediately.

All of the following teams cannot afford to screw their first-round pick up this season; or any season for that matter.

Charlotte Bobcats

With the lottery weighted heavily in the Bobcats favor, they need to get the No. 1 overall pick and use in on Kentucky center Anthony Davis.

There is no depth on the Bobcats, and with the worst season in their short history, it’s time for a serious effort to rebuild. That has to start with a star of Davis’ magnitude.

If Charlotte gets one of the secondary players in Michael Kidd-Gilchrist or Thomas Robinson it won’t be terrible, but it won’t be the franchise changing addition that Anthony Davis would be.

Cleveland Cavaliers

With the development of Kyrie Irving as a real star in the NBA, the Cavaliers must continue to take advantage of the picks they acquire through trades.

As Cleveland sits at No. 3 in odds of winning the draft lottery, they know that they could steal the show again and pick No. 1. just like they did last year.

No matter where they end up selecting, they need to take a stellar player that fits the team going forward. The best player for their schemes and the team’s style is Kansas power forward Thomas Robinson.

New Orleans Hornets

After the scrutiny the team faced after the Chris Paul fiasco, this 2012 NBA draft may be more important for the future of this organization than any other.

They can’t mess this up.

With two lottery picks this season and plenty of room under the cap, the Hornets have the potential to build an amazing team full of role players. With the perfect team and plenty of money, this is the kind of team that could shock the world via a big signing through free agency that would be something special.

It all starts by making smart choices in the draft.

2012 FIRST ROUND DRAFT CHOICE ORDER

1. Charlotte 7-59

2. Washington 20-46

3. Cleveland 21-45

4. New Orleans 21-45

5. Sacramento 22-44

6. New Jersey* 22-44

7. Golden State# 23-43

8. Toronto 23-43

9. Detroit 25-41

10. Minnesota (To New Orleans via LA Clippers) 26-40

11. Portland 28-38

12. Milwaukee 31-35

13. Phoenix 33-33

14. Houston 34-32

The order for the remainder of the first round picks is as follows:

15. Philadelphia 35-31

16. New York (To Houston) 36-30

17. Dallas 36-30

18. Utah (To Minnesota) 36-30

19. Orlando 37-29

20. Denver 38-28

21. Boston 39-27

22. LA Clippers (To Boston via OKC) 40-26

23. Atlanta 40-26

24. LA Lakers (To Cleveland) 41-25

25. Memphis 41-25

26. Indiana 42-24

27. Miami 46-20

28. Oklahoma City 47-19

29. Chicago 50-16

30. San Antonio (To Golden State) 50-16

* - This pick may be conveyed to Portland.

# - This pick may be conveyed to Utah via New Jersey.

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