Lakers delay Celtics taking Philadelphia 76ers protected NBA Draft pick

By Bret Stuter | Feb 15, 2018

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 16: The lottery drawing begins inside the lottery room during the 2017 NBA Draft Lottery at the New York Hilton in New York, New York. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2017 NBAE (Photo by Jennifer Pottheiser/NBAE via Getty Images) /

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The Los Angeles Lakers 2018 NBA Draft 1st round pick will either end up in the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers (1,6-30) or the Boston Celtics (2-5). Now odds stack up for the Sixers to retain the pick

The 2018 NBA Draft may be a deep pool of incredible talent invading the ranks of the NBA. Or it could be pyrite, Fool’s Gold. At least, that is what the Boston Celtics wish, as their chances of claiming a 2018 Top-5 pick diminish to 2.1 percent with the Los Angeles Lakers recent wave of success.

To place all that into perspective, the Philadelphia 76ers have a 0.8 percent, or eight parts of 1,000, of landing the top pick of the 2018 NBA Draft. Rare, but not unheard of. Still, the likelihood of a first round pick from the Lakers landing at number one are so unlikely that we won’t consider that as a possibility for now.

Benefits 76ers more, hurts Celtics more

So which is truly better for the Philadelphia 76ers? Which is truly better for the Boston Celtics? To understand all of that, we need to consider multiple factors. The most obvious involve team roster/salary cap. the team’s draft pick makeup in each of the next two years, where the picks will end up, and finally, which players will be available in the draft.

According to Tankathon.com, the current makeup (February 14, 2018) of 2018 NBA Draft picks for the two teams is:

Boston – 27
Philadelphia – 11,17, 39, 47, 59

Now, turn the calendar to 2019 (assuming the same team order) and what do we see?