Welcome to the 2026 NBA draft lottery.
Ever since the final horn sounded on the 2025-26 regular season, the 14 teams who missed the postseason have been patiently waiting to hear their fate in the NBA draft.
After finishing with the three worst records this season, the Wizards, Pacers and Nets all have the same odds to land the No. 1 pick at 14%. But will another team beat the odds and luck their way into the top pick like the Mavericks last season? Follow along in Sports Illustrated’s live blog of the 2026 NBA draft lottery:
Live updates: Tracking the results of the 2026 NBA draft lottery
Odds for every team to win the 2026 NBA draft lottery
As mentioned above, the three teams with the best odds to win the No. 1 pick are the Wizards, Pacers and Nets. Not too far behind them are the Jazz and Kings, who finished the 2025-26 campaign with identical 22–60 records.
Two teams that made the playoffs are in the draft lottery due to trades. The Hawks own the Pelicans’ pick (due to last year’s Derik Queen trade) and the right to swap with the Bucks. And, in a scenario that should strike fear into the hearts of all other 29 teams, the reigning champion Thunder own the Clippers’ pick due to the Paul George trade from 2019.
The team with the slimmest chances to earn a top-four pick is the Hornets, who finished the 2025-26 campaign with a 44-38 record and lost to the Magic in the play-in tournament.
Seed Team Record Odds of a Top Four Pick Odds of No. 1 pick
1 Washington 17-65 52.1% 14.0%
2 Indiana 19-63 52.1% 14.0%
3 Brooklyn 20-62 52.1% 14.0%
4 Utah 22-60 45.2% 11.5%
5 Sacramento 22-60 45.2% 11.5%
6 Memphis 25-57 37.0% 9.0%
7 Atlanta (via NO) 26-56 29.3% 6.8%
8 Dallas 26-56 29% 6.7%
9 Chicago 31-51 20.3% 4.5%
10 Milwaukee 32-50 13.9% 3.0%
11 Golden State 37-45 9.4% 2.0%
12 Oklahoma City (via LA Clippers) 42-40 7.1% 1.5%
13 Miami 43-39 4.8% 1.0%
14 Charlotte 44-38 2.4% 0.5%
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