After a long, agonizing wait, the Lakers reaped their lone reward from last season by winning the 7th pick in the draft lottery Tuesday night.
James Worthy and Jerry Buss’ bobble head represented the Lakers in New York City in the team’s first appearance at the draft lottery since 2005. Always a bittersweet moment, Lakers fans were left cheering for the #1 pick in a pool of the league’s worst teams of teams of the season. Entering the night, the Lakers had a 6.3% chance of the #1 overall pick, 21.5% chance at a top 3 pick, and a 74.4% chance at the 6th or 7th pick.
Their position in the lottery comes as a result of an abysmal season, which saw the Lakers struggle to recover without Dwight Howard and seeing Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash play just 21 games combined, and none of those were together. The 27-55 record marks the worst win percentage in franchise history since moving to Los Angeles, and the second worst including their years in Minneapolis.
But with the dust settled in the draft lottery, the Lakers can now focus in not only on potential prospects, but also potential trades. Each day brings a new Kevin Love trade rumor, and with all the picks in the lottery settled, definitive talks can begin.