NBA Draft Lottery Predictions: Top 5 contenders best placed to get the first overall pick
The NBA Draft Lottery is set to take place at 3 p.m. Eastern Time and will be nationally televised by ABC. Additionally, the league also shared its prediction tracker for each team with the best odds to land the first overall pick. With a 2024 draft class filled with interesting prospects, it remains to be seen how the order shakes up.
During the 2023 NBA draft, the league saw numerous talented players, such as Victor Wembanyama, Brandon Miller and the Thompson twins. Considering how deep the draft pool was, it'll be interesting to see how this year's class stacks up to its predecessor.
With prospects Alexandre Sarr and Ron Holland eager to make a name for themselves in the league, it is yet to be seen which team will acquire the young athletes.
NBA Draft Lottery: Top 5 projected teams to get the No. 1 overall pick
5) San Antonio Spurs
Starting with No. 5 on the NBA Draft Lottery list are the San Antonio Spurs, who have 10.5% odds at the first overall pick. Last year's draft saw the Spurs utilize their No. 1 selection by landing Victor Wembanyama as the cornerstone of their franchise.
If they could land the No. 1 overall selection once again, the Spurs could add a quality piece to their promising young core of players. The team finished 14th (a 22-60 record) in the Western Conference standings. San Antonio also ranked 26th offensively (109.3 rating) and 21st defensively (115.6 rating) in the league.
4) Portland Trail Blazers
Listed fourth on the NBA Draft Lottery list are the Portland Trail Blazers, with 13.2% odds at the first pick. Last year, Portland selected Scoot Henderson third overall, as he showed tremendous promise during his two seasons with the G League Ignite.
The Trail Blazers are still navigating their way through the challenge of the rebuild process and could gain a helping hand if they somehow landed with the No. 1 pick in this year's draft. They finished 29th offensively (107.6 rating), 23rd defensively (116.6 rating) and 15th (21-61 record) in the Western Conference standings.
3) Charlotte Hornets
Moving next on the NBA Draft Lottery predictions list, the Charlotte Hornets have the third-best odds at 13.3% to make the first selection in the 2024 draft. Hornets rookie Brandon Miller showed great promise in his first year, with the franchise looking to build upon that momentum by landing more young players with tremendous upside to their game.
Ranked 28th in offense (108.6 rating) and 29th at the defensive end (119.2 rating), Charlotte ended its 2023-24 season in 13th place (21-61 record) in the Eastern Conference standings.
2) Washington Wizards
To finish second-to-last in the Eastern Conference with a 15-67 record, the Washington Wizards could gain some momentum on their way into the next season by possibly landing the 2024 No. 1 pick. According to the NBA Draft Lottery predictions list, the Wizards have 14.0% odds to secure it.
Additionally, Washington ranked 25th offensively (110.2 rating) and 28th defensively (118.9 rating) during the 2023-24 season.
1) Detroit Pistons
Last on the NBA Draft Lottery list is the team that finished with the worst record in the league, the Detroit Pistons. Their odds are listed with a 14.0% chance of going No. 1 in this year's draft.
It was a challenging experience for Pistons fans to witness one of the most disappointing seasons in the franchise's history. Going No. 1 at the 2024 NBA draft would certainly put some of the odds back in their favor for a change.