How does the NBA Draft lottery work?

Here is what you need to know to understand how the 2021 NBA Draft lottery will work.

The 2021 NBA Draft lottery will take place on Tuesday night ahead of Game 2 of the 2021 Western Conference Finals between the LA Clippers and the Phoenix Suns.

While teams like the Clippers and Suns are still playing for an NBA championship, Tuesday night is all about the 14 teams who did not qualify for the NBA Playoffs this year. Whether it is the team with the worst record in the league in Houston Rockets or the Golden State Warriors who barely missed the Western Conference Playoffs, they are among 14 teams hoping to win the lottery.

This is what you need to know to understand all that goes down when it comes to the lottery.

2021 NBA Draft lottery: How does the lottery system even work?

To best avoid tanking, the lottery had an amendment a few years ago that gave the three worst teams in the league the same odds at winning it. The three worst teams this season were the Rockets, the Detroit Pistons and the Orlando Magic, all with a 14-percent chance of getting the top pick. The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Cleveland Cavaliers have an 11.5-percent chance.

In layman’s terms, the teams with the worst records have the best chance at winning the lottery, while those that only barely missed out on making the playoffs have the worst chances of winning it. Here are the percent chances for all 14 teams participating in the lottery in terms of the likelihood in which they will be picking. Only one of them will end up with the No. 1 overall pick.

As for who is expected to be taking very high in the 2021 NBA Draft, Oklahoma State Cowboys point guard Cade Cunningham projects as his class’ top overall prospect. Other players who could go in the top five are USC Trojans center Evan Mobley, shooting guard Jalen Green of the G League, Gonzaga Bulldogs guard Jalen Suggs and small forward Jonathan Kuminga of the G League.

Here is to any of these struggling teams getting their next face of the franchise in the NBA Draft.