Feeling Lucky? Sixers Have Small Chance to Pick No. 1

The Sixers won a tiebreaker with the Detroit Pistons earning them the sixth spot in the NBA Draft Lottery. The Sixers and Pistons finished with identical 27-55 records.

Despite winning the coin flip, the Sixers have the same 53 out of 1,000 (5.3-percent) chance of landing the top pick as the Pistons do when when the lottery is held in May.

If you think that is a long shot for the No. 1 pick then think again:

In 1993 the Orlando Magic won the No. 1 pick (Chris Webber) with just a 1.52-percent chance. In 2000 the New Jersey Nets won it (Kenyon Martin) with a 4.4-percent chance. In 2007 the Portland Trail Blazers got Greg Oden with the same 5.3-percent chance as the Sixers.

In 2008 the Chicago Bulls picked up Derrick Rose with a 1.7-percent chance.

The tiebreaker is significant because the draft order outside the top three teams selected in the lottery is determined by worst regular season record. That means the Sixers won't do worse than the ninth pick in the draft.

The team with the greatest chance of landing No. 1 are the Nets (12-70) with a 25-percent chance, followed by Minnesota (15-67) with a 20-percent chance and Sacramento (25-57) with a 15-percent chance.

The last time the Sixers picked No. 1 was in 1996 when they selected Allen Iverson. We all know how that worked out (well at least for the first 10-plus seasons).

Here is to hoping that the Sixers win the lottery and get their choice or John Wall, Evan Turner and DeMarcus Cousins.

The 2010 NBA Draft will be held June 24 in New York City.

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