Each week, we will take a look at the NBA and the standings–particularly the bottom of them, to rank teams based on their odds to land the number one pick in the draft. They are not necessarily ranked by who is making the most or who should tank the most, but rather the highest odds of landing the top draft pick in the lottery, based on lottery odds.
TANK Power Rankings (based on chances to finish with No. 1 lottery odds)
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Philadelphia 76ers
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Los Angeles Lakers (would keep pick if they finish 1-3 in the lottery)
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Brooklyn Nets*
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Denver Nuggets
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Charlotte Hornets
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New York Knicks
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Minnesota Timberwolves*
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Utah Jazz
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Sacramento Kings
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New Orleans Pelicans
** = Does not have a first round pick
Notes:
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The Sixers are being outscored by an average of more than 17 points per game thus far early in the season.
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The Nets are a team that is quite lost. They owe their next two first round picks to the Celtics.
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Speaking of the Celtics, they are a tough team to project for this. They are not a very good roster, but in the East, they could easily creep up into one of the last few seeds for the playoffs. However, they are in a good position, already owed three first round picks.
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Something the Celtics would also be interested in is the status of the Dallas Mavericks. Since DeAndre Jordan spurred their agreement and broke his word, they entered the season a bit undermanned to truly contend in the West, as they then did not bring back Tyson Chandler. They may struggle to secure one of the last seeds, and it’s hard to envision them beating the Warriors, Clippers, Thunder or Spurs, but they owe their pick to Boston.
