It's NBA Draft Lottery time! That means all the shame of losing, tanking and mismanagement comes together in the same room for one night during the conference finals.
On Tuesday night, 14 representatives from each lottery-eligible team -- owners, general managers, head coaches, players and former legends -- will awkwardly sit around as a bunch of ping-pong balls bounce around backstage and subsequent cards are turned. Of the 14 teams, 13 misssed the playoffs this season, with the Celtics, who play Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals on Wednesday, being the outlier. Of course, this means the Nets are the only non-playoff team that will not be represented in New York.
Each team's choice of on-stage individual says a lot about the team's current state of mind. A team sending a current player is showing it believes in its youth. A team sending a former legend might portray a feeling of mistrust within management (see: Knicks, New York). Below, we analyze each representative, starting with the team with the best chance to land the first overall pick, the Boston Celtics.
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