2026 NBA Draft Lottery: Wizards to pick first overall, Nets fall outside top 4

The 2026 NBA Draft Lottery was held in Chicago, IL
The 2026 NBA Draft Lottery was held in Chicago, ILČTK / AP / Nam Y. Huh

The Washington Wizards will pick first overall in the 2026 NBA Draft after drawing the top pick in Sunday's lottery

The Washington Wizards became the first team to end with the worst record to receive the first overall pick in the current NBA Draft Lottery format.

The Washington Wizards have had the first overall pick twice before, whilst also having had it once as the Chicago Zephyrs in 1962 and once as the Chicago Packers in 1961.

The last time the Wizards picked first overall was in the 2010 NBA Draft, when they drafted John Wall, who represented the Wizards during Sunday's lottery in Chicago.

Along with the Wizards and Indiana Pacers, the Brooklyn Nets had a 52.1% chance to end with a top 4 pick after finishing with a 20-62 record. The Nets fell to the sixth pick, however, making it their second-highest pick since drafting Kenyon Martin first overall in 2000.

Three picks in Sunday's lottery were subject to trades: the Oklahoma City Thunder owned the Los Angeles Clippers pick (1.5% chance at top pick, 7.1% at top 4) following the infamous Paul George trade in 2019, the Indiana Pacers' lottery pick would be conveyed to the Clippers if it fell outside the top 4 (courtesy of the Ivica Zubac trade), and the Atlanta Hawks had the choice of the higher pick between the New Orleans Pelicans' and the Milwaukee Bucks'.

Full NBA Draft Lottery results

1: Washington Wizards

2: Utah Jazz

3: Memphis Grizzlies

4: Chicago Bulls

5: Los Angeles Clippers (via IND)

6: Brooklyn Nets

7: Sacramento Kings

8: Atlanta Hawks (via NOP)

9: Dallas Mavericks

10: Milwaukee Bucks

11: Golden State Warriors

12: Oklahoma City Thunder (via LAC)

13: Miami Heat

14: Charlotte Hornets

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