Suns Secure Best Odds for No. 1 Pick in 2018 NBA Draft with Loss to Warriors

The Phoenix Suns will officially finish with the worst record in the NBA following Sunday's 117-100 loss to the Golden State Warriors at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The defeat also means Phoenix will own the best odds of landing the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA draft lottery.

The Suns are guaranteed to have a first-round pick that falls between the first and fourth overall selections, with the odds of each pick listed below, courtesy of Tankathon:

• No. 1 Pick: 25.0 percent
• No. 2 Pick: 21.5 percent
• No. 3 Pick: 17.7 percent
• No. 4 Pick: 35.8 percent

For Suns fans, winning the draft lottery would likely bring conflicting emotions.

On one hand, owning the No. 1 pick would provide some optimism after years of watching Phoenix become the NBA's worst team. The 2017-18 season is the third straight in which the Suns registered fewer than 30 wins, and the franchise has gone eight years without a playoff appearance.

Being the first team on the clock would allow the Suns an opportunity to select one of Deandre Ayton, Michael Porter Jr., Marvin Bagley III, Luka Doncic, Mohamed Bamba, Trae Young or Collin Sexton. Any of those players could be a foundational star for the Suns alongside Devin Booker.

The team's recent player development record, though, may be a source of consternation among a group of Suns followers. Booker and TJ Warren qualify as successes, but that's weighed against the underwhelming on-court returns from Josh Jackson, Dragan Bender and Marquese Chriss so far.

Outside of the draft, general manager Ryan McDonough has made various missteps as well to further the franchise's stagnancy.

There was the four-year, $52 million deal for Tyson Chandler and the five-year, $70 million deal for Brandon Knight, who was acquired from the Milwaukee Bucks.

During the 2015 offseason, Phoenix made a strong push to sign LaMarcus Aldridge, and the team nearly had a deal in place to get Kyrie Irving from the Cleveland Cavaliers, according to The Athletic's Jason Loyd. Either move would've been at odds with how far away the Suns are from playoff contention in the Western Conference, and each symbolized what has been a lack of any real foresight from the team.

Unlike the Minnesota Timberwolves and Philadelphia 76ers—two teams that had been very bad but were at least building toward something—the Suns have been largely devoid of a long-term plan.

In July 2017, Phoenix gave McDonough an extension through the 2019-20 season, so it doesn't appear he's going anywhere anytime soon.

Building through the draft is the Suns' easiest path to its first NBA title, and having another top-four pick helps achieve that strategy. But McDonough's critics will have justifiable concerns about whether he's the right person to continue what remains a years-long process in making Phoenix a postseason contender.