2012 NBA Lottery Results: Biggest Winners and Losers of Pre-Draft Event
The lottery balls can derail a franchise. They can also save a franchise.
During Wednesday night's 2012 NBA draft lottery, the same was true for several teams. Some got exactly what they were expecting, some received good news and some are busy cursing David Stern right now.
Let's take a complete look at the winners and losers from the big night.
Winners:
New Orleans Hornets
Not only did they keep the No. 10 pick they were expected to receive, but the Hornets defied the odds and received the No. 1 pick.
They had just a 13.7 percent chance of getting the first pick.
Being able to add Anthony Davis and another lottery pick to a team that already has Eric Gordon and plenty of role players is huge for New Orleans.
Portland Trail Blazers
The Blazers have plenty of talented players in Nicolas Batum, Wesley Matthews and LaMarcus Aldridge. Adding a top-10 pick to that will make them contenders in the West.
Golden State Warriors
Knowing the Warriors' luck, I was expecting them to fall out of the top seven and lose their pick to Utah.
Nonetheless, Golden State fans can rejoice, as they received pick No. 7 and will now be able to add a much-needed franchise player.
Losers:
Charlotte Bobcats
The Bobcats can't catch a break. I feel like your odds at getting the first overall selection should have a direct correlation with how many wins you have.
Charlotte, maybe more than any team ever, needed the first pick. They'll get a good player at No. 2, but they won't get Davis, who is arguably the only franchise-changer in this draft class.
Brooklyn Nets
We pretty much knew this was going to happen coming in, but it's still tough to swallow for the Nets. They needed a top-three pick to keep their selection, but they got what was expected and Portland keeps the pick at No. 6.
If the Nets got a top-three pick, keeping Deron Williams would have gotten a lot easier.
Utah Jazz
The Jazz failed to get a lottery pick, which could have been huge since they are already a playoff team.
Complete lottery order
Courtesy (you can find the complete draft order here)
| Pick | Team |
| 1 | New Orleans Hornets |
| 2 | Charlotte Bobcats |
| 3 | Washington Wizards |
| 4 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 5 | Sacramento Kings |
| 6 | Portland Trail Blazers (from Brooklyn) |
| 7 | Golden State Warriors |
| 8 | Toronto Raptors |
| 9 | Detroit Pistons |
| 10 | New Orleans Hornets |
| 11 | Portland Trail Blazers |
| 12 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 13 | Phoenix Suns |
| 14 | Houston Rockets |
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