CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The first 14 picks of the 2022 NBA Draft were decided with the annual NBA Draft Lottery Tuesday night.
The Orlando Magic won the NBA draft lottery and landed the No. 1 overall pick for the first time since they got Dwight Howard nearly two decades ago.
After missing the playoffs, the Charlotte Hornets were in the lottery to win the No. 1 overall pick, but their odds weren't great. In fact, the Hornets stood just a 1% chance of landing the first pick. Instead, the Hornets got pick No. 13, which was the most likely outcome.
The Hornets own pick No. 15 as well due to a sign-and-trade with New Orleans and Memphis last August.
Notable No. 13 picks in the last 10 years include
- Tyler Herro
- Devin Booker
- Donovan Mitchell
Charlotte has only held the 13th selection entering the draft once, in 1996. They famously picked Kobe Bryant, but his draft rights had been traded to the Lakers for Vlade Divac.
The Hornets have had a top-10 pick just once since 2016 when they drafted All-Star guard LaMelo Ball No. 3 overall in 2020. Charlotte has had the first pick just once in team history, selecting Larry Johnson in 1991.
How the NBA Draft Lottery works
Fourteen ping-pong balls, numbered one through 14, are placed in a lottery machine. There are four balls randomly drawn by NBA officials, and the four-number combination is one of the 1,000 that are assigned to each of the 14 NBA Draft lottery slots based on their records during the 2021-22 season.
That combination on the first draw reveals which team receives the number one overall pick in June’s NBA Draft, then that process is repeated three more times to reveal the teams who select two through four.
NBA Draft Lottery Live Stream
On Tuesday night beginning at 8 p.m. E.T. on the Locked On NBA YouTube channel, our local podcast hosts for NBA Draft Lottery teams, streamed their live reactions to how the lottery plays out.
Who will the Hornets take?
On a recent episode of Locked On Hornets, we have an update on the team's search for a new head coach, plus Walker Mehl and Doug Branson preview draft lottery odds and scenarios for the Hornets. Click here to watch.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.