Coming into the 2025 NBA Draft Lottery, there were plenty of storylines to watch. Presumptive No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg had a dozen potential options, with Washington, Charlotte, and Utah among the favorites via odds. However, two didn’t even get into the top-4, as Dallas, San Antonio, and Philadelphia moved into the top tier.
Ultimately, the Dallas Mavericks went from a 1.8% chance at getting the top pick to winning the lottery. San Antonio, Philly, Charlotte, and Utah rounded out the top 5 picks in June’s draft.
Here are three takeaways from what occurred and how it’ll affect the draft.
The Dallas Mavericks representative, four-time All-Star Rolando Blackman, after the franchise wins the NBA Draft Lottery – stating simply on Cooper Flagg: "He can hoop." pic.twitter.com/cyXgEruNq6
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) May 13, 2025
1. Dallas’ miracle win
When the Mavericks made the franchise-altering move to trade superstar Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis, their championship window moved up to just a few years. Now, with Flagg on board, that puts them in a potential position to be a national contender for a while if things work out. That’s assuming Dallas keeps the pick, as they could put it in a package to give to Milwaukee for superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who could be open in a trade. Either way, the franchise now has no hope for the future.
2. Spurs options at 2 and 14
They may have been the runner-ups to rival Dallas, but the Spurs are another big winner, set to pick at No. 2. They already have their franchise player in 7’4 center Victor Wembanyama and traded for NBA all-star guard De'Aaron Fox. They’ll have some quality options to take at 2, including former Rutgers players, Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey. If San Antonio hits on this pick and gets a solid piece at the end of the lottery, they’ll be in the mix for championships just as soon as Dallas.
3. Worst teams suffer setbacks
Four franchises won fewer than 24 games this season. None of them ended up with a top-3 pick, including Utah, which won just 17 games overall, ending up with the No. 5 pick. For teams such as the Jazz, Washington, and New Orleans, their ability to rebuild into a contender faster has taken a major hit. On one hand, each of these teams will have a good chance at landing someone like AJ Dybansta in the 2026 NBA Draft. However, that means another year of tanking for them.