The team with the best chance at winning the NBA Draft Lottery doesn’t usually do so. In fact, the 2004 Orlando Magic were the last team to have this fortune, where they took Dwight Howard. Well, that trend continued this year. With the fifth best odds (a 10.3% chance) at winning the NBA Draft Lottery, the Washington Wizards have in fact done so. They were able to secure the #1 pick instead the team with the best chance and the team who everyone thought would win: the New Jersey Nets, with a 25% chance.
It has long been speculated that no matter who gets the first pick, John Wall will be that selection. If that theory holds true, then Wall will be in DC next year. Maybe Wall became conditioned to think that he would end up in New Jersey, and possibly playing with LeBron James next year, because in his post-lottery interview with ESPN’s Andy Katz, he seemed less than enthused about potentially playing for the Wizards. Who knows, maybe that’s his normal even-keeled demeanor and I’m making more out of it than I should be (which is possible), but I would’ve liked to have seen his reaction if New Jersey did in fact win the lottery.
With Wall going to Washington, they can finally move Gilbert Arenas to the 2, which is where he should have been from day one. Gilbert is a top-notch, underrated scorer who can light it up on any given night. A guy who averaged 28 point a night (as he did a few years ago) should not be the team’s PG. That’s not a knock on Gilbert, but rather it’s saying that he’s better suited to play the off-guard position. When you pair John Wall alongside him, that can be an interesting combination because Wall doesn’t mind sharing the rock and is deadly in open space; as is Arenas. That could quietly and quickly become one of the more electrifying backcourts in the league. Despite fading into irrelevancy lately due to injury and legal issues, Gilbert is only 27 years old, so don’t write him off just yet.
Here is a clip from Wall’s post-lottery interview with ESPN:
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