FILE - Names of all 30 first round picks fill the NBA basketball draft board at the end of the first round, Wednesday, June 26, 2024, in New York. The NBA draft lottery for 2025 is set to start on May 12.
Julia Nikhinson / AP
The NBA Draft Lottery is set to begin on Monday, and the Portland Trail Blazers once again find themselves crossing their fingers for a No. 1 pick.
Exactly where they’ll end up remains to be seen. The actual draft takes place on June 25.
All 14 teams that did not make the playoffs are eligible to participate in the Draft Lottery. The teams with the worst records from last season have the highest odds of securing a high draft pick.
Many experts say whoever gets the first pick will likely select Cooper Flagg, the 6-foot-9-inch star from Duke. The Trail Blazers currently have the 10th spot in the draft, giving them a slim 3% chance of getting the first pick.
The Trail Blazers finished this season with a 36-46 record, narrowly missing a spot in the Play-In Tournament. The team hasn’t made the playoffs since 2021 and has been a regular feature of the Draft Lottery in recent years.
The team has started building a young core of players with those draft picks: Donovan Clingan, Scoot Henderson and Shaedon Sharpe were all first-round picks.
The Draft Lottery starts Monday at 4 p.m. PT on ESPN.
Correction: This story has been updated with the correct date of the NBA Draft. OPB regrets the error.
