NBA Draft Lottery: The Los Angeles Lakers, Celtics, 76ers are winners, however, the New York Knicks…
The NBA Draft Lottery was held Tuesday night in New York City and for the fans of the Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, and Philadelphia 76ers, it was a joyous occasion. Each team entered the night with hopes of snagging the No.1 overall pick, but in the end, it was the Celtics who got the top prize. However, not to be left on the side of the road in despair, the 76ers managed to climb their way into 3rd thanks to a trade with the Sacramento Kings and the Lakers managed to keep their top 3 protected pick that could have gone to Philly.
While three of the All-Time top franchises are seeing a rebirth of sorts, one member of that spectrum continues to slide. The New York Knicks are in the midst of a dangerous game with their top players, Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis but after Tuesday, that black hole got wider. The Knicks knew going in that their shot at the No.1 selection was minuscule at best but what else did they have to look forward to after such a dismal season?
There’s no telling what will happen this offseason if Anthony decides to lift his NTC or not or if Porzingis will let his frustrations get the best of him and carry over to the court? For a team trying their best to run their star player out of town, they needed to get within the top 3 to get one of those impact players that K.P. turned out to be. No such luck.
Meanwhile, the Lakers are in a prime spot for post-Kobe Bryant redemption as they could walk away with a top young talent or trade that pick along with Jordan Clarkson to the Indiana Pacers for Paul George. The 76ers are no longer in rebuild mode as their young talent gets ready to take the league by storm next season. However, the Celtics are the team to watch. Thanks to a Game 7 defeat of the Washington Wizards Monday, the Celtics will head to the Eastern Conference Finals to play the Cleveland Cavaliers and no matter what happens they will enter the 2017 NBA Draft as the team with the pieces to make one of the biggest trades in NBA history.
While teams like the Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings, and Dallas Mavericks failed to gain any ground, they can take solace in the fact that they are in a better position than the Knicks heading into the Draft.
Mark has been covering Sports and Entertainment for the past six years. His work has been featured on Bleacher Report, ESPN, Fox Sports, Teen Vogue, and many other websites.
