Mavericks win NBA draft lottery with 1.8% odds

The Dallas Mavericks moved past the Luka Doncic commercialized successful resounding manner Monday by winning the NBA draught lottery and the accompanying close to prime Duke's Cooper Flagg successful June with the No. 1 pick.

The Mavericks had conscionable a 1.8% accidental to triumph the lottery and jumped 10 spots to drawback the apical pick, the biggest determination by immoderate squad successful lottery history, according to ESPN Research.

The improbable triumph successful the lottery comes lone 3 months aft Dallas traded Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers successful February, a determination that drew wide disapproval from the instrumentality base.

"I americium truthful blessed for Mavericks fans," Dallas CEO Rick Welts said, clutching the envelope with the No. 1 emblazoned connected it. "I lone got to Dallas Jan. 1 this year. Feb. 1, we broke the net [with the Doncic trade]. I americium conscionable amazed astatine the extent of emotion and transportation that the instrumentality basal has with this team. And what happened today, I can't ideate a amended time for Mavs fans. It's going to truly beryllium thing special. I can't hold to get backmost to Dallas."

Flagg, a 6-foot-9 forward, has been considered the front-runner to beryllium the apical prime successful the draught since August 2023, erstwhile helium announced his determination to postgraduate precocious schoolhouse a twelvemonth aboriginal and enroll successful a assemblage arsenic a 17-year-old.

Despite being 1 of the astir heavy anticipated freshmen to participate the assemblage crippled successful respective years, Flagg exceeded expectations by winning astir each large nationalist subordinate of the twelvemonth award, averaging 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists, and starring the Blue Devils (35-4) to a Final Four appearance.

"I don't cognize who we're going to take, but should we instrumentality him, I deliberation his résumé is beauteous strong," Welts said. "Every clip he's enactment successful a concern that everyone wondered if helium could succeed, he's succeeded and past some."

San Antonio -- with back-to-back rookies of the twelvemonth successful Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle -- volition prime second, Philadelphia volition prime third, and Charlotte volition prime fourth.

"When you leap into the apical 4 again, you enactment yourself arsenic an enactment successful a spot to marque a truly large acquisition with a truly bully player," Spurs manager Mitch Johnson said. "And that's what we're going to look guardant to doing."

Utah (17-65), Washington (18-64), and Charlotte (19-63) entered the nighttime with the champion likelihood of winning the lottery with a 14% shot, followed by New Orleans (21-61) astatine 12.5%. Utah (fifth) and Washington (sixth) fell extracurricular the apical 4 contempt having the 2 worst records successful the NBA past year.

Under the caller strategy implemented successful 2019 -- which flattens the lottery likelihood successful an effort to discourage tanking -- the squad with the worst grounds has yet to triumph the draught lottery.

New Orleans volition prime seventh, Brooklyn eighth, Toronto ninth, Houston 10th, Portland 11th, Chicago 12th, Atlanta 13th and San Antonio 14th.

Dallas' lottery triumph follows a caller inclination of upsets astatine the apical of the draft; Atlanta won the draught lottery past twelvemonth with 3% odds.

Projected to beryllium drafted aft Flagg are a brace of freshmen from Rutgers successful Dylan Harper and Read Entire Article