The New York Knicks didn't have a horse in the draft lottery race, but it wasn't long ago that they did, serving as another reminder of how nice it is to be in control of their future. That was enough of a win, but they got a few bonus victories on top. The Nets fell to No. 6, the Hawks dropped to No. 8, the Pacers didn't get a pick at all, and the Knicks are dominating the Sixers in Game 4 (I knew I could publish this at the start of the fourth with no concerns about the outcome changing).
How about that for a Sunday?
The Wizards were the big winners of the lottery, securing the No. 1 pick, and other teams like the Clippers, who will select No. 5 next month, have a lot to be happy about today. When it comes to teams that don't have a lottery pick, though, the Knicks are probably the main victors there.
Knicks had a great draft lottery without having a pick
When it comes to the NBA, New York has always belonged to the Knicks, and always will. That wouldn't have changed with the draft lottery results, but somehow, after a 20-62 tanking season, Brooklyn is even worse off.
The Nets had a 14% chance at the No. 1 pick, and a 52.1% chance at a top-four selection. All things considered, falling to No. 6 is brutal. If that wasn't bad enough, Houston holds swap rights to Brooklyn's 2027 first-round pick.
No matter what happened with the Nets, they wouldn't have been a threat to the Knicks next season. The main concern for New York and every other top team in the East was Indiana adding a top young star to its roster.
The Pacers sent the Clippers a 2026 top-four protected pick in the Ivica Zubac deadline trade, and they came up just short of getting it.
Indiana was easily the biggest loser of the draft lottery. The Pacers will still be back in full force next season after a down year, but luckily, Darryn Peterson (or another top lottery pick) won't be joining Tyrese Haliburton.
Then there's Atlanta. The Knicks took care of business against the Hawks in the first round, but it was still a good season for them. They laid the foundation for what they want to do moving forward, and they can add to it with the No. 8 selection.
Atlanta was a winner as soon as it received the pick in last year's draft-night trade with New Orleans, but if it could've walked away with a top-four pick (the Hawks had a 29.3% chance at landing that high), they would've been on cloud nine. New York and other top teams in the East are sure glad that didn't happen.
After all those years of crossing fingers for lottery luck, the Knicks got it. What happened in the semifinals wasn't luck, though.
For the second straight year (and for the first time in back-to-back years since 2000), the New York Knicks are back in the Eastern Conference Finals.
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