- In Chad Ford’s new mock draft at ESPN.com (Insider-only link), the first five picks off the board are Markelle Fultz (Celtics), Lonzo Ball (Lakers), Malik Monk (Sixers), Josh Jackson (Suns), and De’Aaron Fox (Kings).
The Celtics will pick first overall in the 2017 NBA draft, having won Tuesday night’s lottery one night after they advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals. The C’s, who exercised their rights to swap with the Nets, entered the lottery with the best odds (25.0%) to land that No. 1 overall pick.
The Lakers were the other big winners in the lottery, moving up to No. 2, ensuring that they’ll keep both this year’s pick and 2019’s first-rounder. Had Los Angeles’ pick fallen outside of the top three, it would have been sent to the Sixers, and the Lakers would’ve owed their unprotected 2019 first-rounder to Orlando. Instead, the Lakers will keep this year’s pick and 2019’s, and will send Philadelphia their unprotected 2018 first-round selection.
The Kings also moved up into the top three, but the Sixers will acquire that pick, exercising their right to swap with Sacramento. The Kings will pick at No. 5, which is where Philadelphia would have selected. Sacramento will also land the Pelicans’ selection at No. 10. That New Orleans selection was acquired by the Kings in February’s DeMarcus Cousins trade and was top-three protected.
The Suns are the night’s biggest losers, having moved from No. 2 in the lottery standings down to No. 4 overall. The Magic, Timberwolves, and Knicks each moved down one spot as well.
Here’s the full lottery order for the 2017 NBA draft:
- Boston Celtics (via Nets)
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Philadelphia 76ers (swapped with Kings)
- Phoenix Suns
- Sacramento Kings (swapped with Sixers)
- Orlando Magic
- Minnesota Timberwolves
- New York Knicks
- Dallas Mavericks
- Sacramento Kings (via Pelicans)
- Charlotte Hornets
- Detroit Pistons
- Denver Nuggets
- Miami Heat
Tonight’s lottery results are fascinating on a number of levels, but particularly so for two of the NBA’s most-storied franchises, the Celtics and Lakers. Boston is in position to either pick a player like point guard Markelle Fultz, considered by draft experts to be a future star, or to dangle that No. 1 overall pick in a trade for an established veteran star next month. The Celtics are coming off a season in which they earned the top seed in the East, and they also own the Nets’ unprotected first-round pick in 2018, so the franchise is extremely well-positioned for the future.
As for the Lakers, they’ll breathe a sigh of relief after hanging onto their 2017 first-rounder, and they’re in position to create a union that has been the subject of much speculation in recent weeks. UCLA point guard Lonzo Ball is widely viewed as the second-best prospect in this year’s draft, and he and his father LaVar have made no secret of the fact that Lonzo wants to play for the Lakers. Tonight’s lottery results make that a very real possibility.
The Kings are another winner tonight, having moved up from No. 8 to No. 5 and having also held onto the Pelicans’ pick at No. 10. Sacramento will be in a great position to pick two cornerstone pieces to kickstart the club’s rebuilding process.
During the Wizards‘ Game 7 loss to the Celtics, Washington’s bench was outscored 48 to 5. That glaring disparity was certainly not lost on John Wall, writes Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com. In fact, Wall’s last words before leaving the court Monday night were, “Forty-eight to five,” which he then repeated before departing with, “Our bench had five points.”
Here’s more out of the Southeast:
- Despite the immense disappointment Wizards players are feeling after their Game 7 defeat, players expressed confidence that the team can continue to compete at a high level if it can keep its best players together. Otto Porter, a restricted free agent this offseason, is considered by teammates Wall, Bradley Beal, and Markieff Morris to be a vital part of the team’s core, reports Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. Morris tells Buckner that Porter is worth a max contract and he hopes that he gets it.
- As reported earlier today, Marcin Gortat feels underappreciated by the Wizards and may request a trade. More details and quotes on Gortat’s feelings can be found via Candace Buckner of The Washington Post.
- Impeding Heat free agent Dion Waiters said that the Heat do not need Lonzo Ball because they are covered at the point guard position with Goran Dragic, Tyler Johnson, and “other [players],” reports Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Waiters also offered advice for Ball: “He’s got to go somewhere where he’s able to play his game. He’s got to go somewhere where he’s able to make mistakes. Because I think in this game today, he’s got to be able to make mistakes and have a coach who allows you to make mistakes, and you can learn from it.”
- Luke Babbitt‘s future with the Heat is written about by Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Winderman concludes that, while Babbitt likely will not be an offseason priority for the Heat, the team will consider him because of his Bird Rights and skill set.
The Nets will be the only non-playoff team without a close eye on Tuesday night’s lottery results, since the Celtics have swap rights to their first-round pick. But after that swap is made, the Nets will hold the rights to the first-round picks for the two teams in action on Monday night, the Celtics and the Wizards. And Brooklyn is busy exploring its options for those two late first-round selections, along with its second-round pick.
- Marcus Keene, Tacko Fall, Michael Ojo, and others are participating in a group workout on Monday with the Celtics, sources tell Michael Scotto of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
The NBA confirmed each team’s representatives today for this year’s draft lottery, which will take place on Tuesday night. As confirmed by the league (via Twitter), here are this year’s reps for lottery teams:
- Boston Celtics: Wyc Grousbeck (owner)
- Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker
- Los Angeles Lakers: Magic Johnson (president of basketball operations)
- Philadelphia 76ers: Joel Embiid
- Orlando Magic: Frank Vogel (head coach)
- Minnesota Timberwolves: Andrew Wiggins
- New York Knicks: Walt Frazier (MSG Network broadcaster)
- Sacramento Kings: Dave Joerger (head coach)
- Dallas Mavericks: Michael Finley (assistant VP of basketball operations)
- New Orleans Pelicans: Alvin Gentry (head coach)
- Charlotte Hornets: Rich Cho (GM)
- Detroit Pistons: Jeff Bower (GM)
- Denver Nuggets: Gary Harris
- Miami Heat: Alonzo Mourning (VP of player programs)
Additionally, the NBA also announced that it will reveal several award winners and award finalists later this week. The league will unveil its three All-NBA teams on Thursday. Then, prior to the Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Friday, the NBA will name its three finalists for each major award: MVP, Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Sixth Man of the Year, Most Improved Player, and Coach of the Year.
Those individual awards won’t be officially announced until June 26, during the NBA’s inaugural awards broadcast on TNT. However, the All-NBA announcement on Thursday will be an intriguing one. A team’s ability to offer a player a more lucrative Designated Veteran Extension hinges on whether or not he earns an All-NBA nod. So teams like the Pacers and Jazz will be watching very closely to see if Paul George and Gordon Hayward earn All-NBA spots and become eligible for those super-max extensions.
- The extra attention put toward Isaiah Thomas in the postseason has put more pressure on the Celtics‘ supporting cast, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England writes. More has been asked of teammates like Jae Crowder, Blakely writes, and they’ve stepped up.
A report from ESPN’s Chad Ford this weekend details just how far player agents will go to keep their clients from being drafted into what they perceive to be less than ideal conditions. Specifically, Ford writes, that agents have been actively avoiding the Kings and the Celtics for two very different reasons.
Ford writes that this year, just as last year, agents are keeping their players away from Sacramento’s front office, refusing workouts and, in the case of Wade Baldwin IV, even declining to share medical records. The hiring of reputable Scott Perry as the organization’s new general manager, has had little impact in that regard.
“It would be malpractice to let my clients play for them,” one longtime agent told Ford. “I’ve had clients there. It’s still the most dysfunctional front office in the league, by a mile. How can you trust those guys with one of your players? It’s going to take a long time to build that trust.”
A similar movement is afoot with regard to the Celtics. According to Ford, the agents of top prospects are reluctant to approve their players working out for the Eastern Conference’s No. 1 seed, citing concern over future playing time.
Agents fear that their clients, like Jaylen Brown in this year’s rookie class, may be faced with a loaded depth chart to navigate through before earning any consistent starter’s minutes.
“I have deep respect for the Celtics,” another agent said. “They may have the best GM and head coach in the league. But I’d have to understand what the plan would be for my client before I let them come. They are loaded at every position. There’s a real danger that they take a player and either he plays a limited role off the bench, or he becomes an asset to be traded to a situation that we’re uncomfortable with. It’s tough.“
- A league executive has praised Celtics general manager Danny Ainge for the trade that yielded Jae Crowder back in 2014, A. Sherrod Blakely of CSN New England writes. Crowder appeared to be little more than a throw-in in the Rajon Rondo deal but has evolved into a premier defender.
Markelle Fultz will interview with several teams at the combine, Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com tweets. The projected No.1 pick will meet with the Celtics, Suns, Lakers, Sixers, Kings, and Knicks.
You can find the odds that each of those teams has at landing the top pick here. The Kings are a notable inclusion to Fultz’s meetings, as they will hand their selection over to the Sixers via a pick swap should they land the No. 1 slot.
Here’s more on the upcoming draft:
- The Knicks will meet with Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan on Thursday, Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News passes along via Twitter. The big man is the 29th best prospect, according to Jonathan Givony of Draft Express.
- Jarrett Allen will meet with the Sixers are Thursday, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer tweets. Givony pegs Allen as the 11th best prospect in the draft.
- Will Lonzo Ball‘s father cause teams to pass on the UCLA product? ESPN’s Fran Fraschilla doesn’t believe so, as Eddie Sefko of the Dallas Morning News relays. “I doubt that will happen. I really do. The kid seems to be a great kid, an absolute delight to deal with and he was a great teammate. So that’s not going to be a big issue,” Fraschilla said.
- Isaiah Thomas was fined $25K for directing inappropriate language toward a fan, according to NBA.com. The incident occurred in Game 3 of the Celtics‘ series against the Wizards.