CHICAGO — There is a moment in the 20-seconds—the exactly-20 seconds—when the 14 ping pong balls are bouncing around the clear oval-shaped cylinder in the NBA draft lottery drawing room and the first ball is pulled that you can palpably feel the tension. And why not? Futures of franchises are literally at stake.
A quick primer on the draft lottery. The real draft lottery, not the televised special the league puts on after the drawing is done. In the basement of the Chicago Hilton, representatives of the 15 eligible teams—Boston and Philadelphia, vying for Sacramento’s pick, were in the room—sit behind two rows of tables.