The Dallas Mavericks dramatically turned the page on the Luka Doncic trade aftermath Monday by winning the NBA draft lottery. This victory secures them the highly coveted No. 1 pick in June`s draft, where they are widely expected to select Duke standout Cooper Flagg.
Remarkably, the Mavericks possessed only a 1.8% chance of winning the lottery. Their jump of 10 positions to claim the top spot represents the largest move made by any team in the history of the NBA lottery, according to data compiled by ESPN Research.
This unexpected lottery triumph comes just three months after Dallas faced significant backlash from its fanbase for trading Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers in February.
“I am so happy for Mavericks fans,” expressed Dallas CEO Rick Welts, holding the envelope that revealed their winning result. “I only got to Dallas on January 1st this year. On February 1st, we broke the internet [with the Doncic trade]. I am just amazed at the depth of emotion and connection that the fan base has with this team. And what happened today, I can`t imagine a better day for Mavs fans. It`s going to really be something special. I can`t wait to get back to Dallas.”
Flagg, a 6-foot-9 forward, has been considered the consensus top prospect for the draft since August 2023. This was when he announced his decision to reclassify, graduating high school a year early to enroll in college as a 17-year-old.
Despite the immense anticipation surrounding his collegiate debut, Flagg exceeded expectations. He earned nearly every major national player of the year award, averaging impressive statistics of 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.2 assists, while leading the Duke Blue Devils (35-4) to an appearance in the Final Four.
Regarding the potential top selection, Welts commented, “I don`t know who we`re going to take, but should we take him, I think his resume is pretty strong. Every time he`s put in a situation that everyone wondered if he could succeed, he`s succeeded and then some.”
Following Dallas in the lottery order, San Antonio secured the second pick (adding to their recent success with back-to-back Rookies of the Year Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle). Philadelphia will pick third, and Charlotte will pick fourth.
“When you jump into the top four again, you put yourself as an organization in a place to make a really big acquisition with a really good player,” stated Spurs coach Mitch Johnson. “And that`s what we`re going to look forward to doing.”
Despite holding the league`s worst records and the best odds (14% each) of winning the lottery, Utah (17-65), Washington (18-64), and Charlotte (19-63) did not land in the top three. Utah fell to fifth, and Washington to sixth, both outside the top four despite their poor season performances.
Since the NBA implemented the current flattened lottery odds system in 2019, designed to disincentivize `tanking,` the team finishing with the worst record in the league has yet to win the No. 1 overall pick in the draft lottery.
The remainder of the lottery order is as follows: New Orleans will pick seventh, Brooklyn eighth, Toronto ninth, Houston tenth, Portland eleventh, Chicago twelfth, Atlanta thirteenth, and San Antonio fourteenth (with their second lottery pick).
Dallas`s surprising lottery win continues a recent trend of upsets at the top of the draft. Last year, Atlanta won the lottery despite having just 3% odds.
Projected to be drafted after Flagg are a pair of talented freshmen from Rutgers: Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey. Both players are expected to be thoroughly evaluated by teams selecting high in the draft.
Harper, a 6-foot-6 point guard, broke the Rutgers freshman scoring record and finished the season as the fifth-leading scorer in the competitive Big Ten Conference. His impressive ballhandling skills, creative passing ability, versatile finishing near the basket, and overall scoring prowess make him a strong candidate for an early pick.
“This draft is really strong at the top, especially in the top three and we`re very excited,” commented 76ers basketball operations president Daryl Morey.
Following Harper, a pool of promising prospects, including Bailey, Baylor guard VJ Edgecombe, Texas wing Tre Johnson, Oklahoma guard Jeremiah Fears, and Duke center Khaman Maluach, are expected to be in contention to hear their names called during the first round.
The 2025 NBA Draft is scheduled to take place over two nights, June 25th and 26th, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.
