Teams like the Washington Wizards and Utah Jazz have been desperate for a star prospect to lift them out of years of mediocrity. And yet, here we are—watching the Dallas Mavericks, fresh off a postseason run, land the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Is this really what the 2019 lottery reforms were supposed to achieve?
NBA Draft Lottery System Needs Reforms Yet Again
Over the last two seasons, the Wizards have won just 33 games while the Mavericks have won 39 alone this season. It’s clear who requires more help here, and the same is the case for the Jazz and the Houston Rockets.
Teams making the postseason have now won the draft lottery in back-to-back years, while the team with the league’s worst record will be picking fifth overall for the third year in a row. This growing disparity traces back to the 2019 lottery reforms, when the NBA flattened the odds by reducing the worst team’s chances of landing the No. 1 pick from 25% to 14%.
Since the NBA changed its lottery system in 2019, the team with the league’s worst record has never won the lottery and picked first overall.
This marks the third straight year that the team with the league’s worst record will pick 5th overall.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates)
The lottery reforms were introduced after the league grew weary of Philadelphia’s blatant tanking strategy, but it’s clear the current system hasn’t solved the problem. This season alone, three teams finished with fewer than 20 wins.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia—once viewed as a title contender—ended up with just 24 wins, largely to ensure its pick stayed in the top seven and didn’t convey to Oklahoma City.
Despite the intent of the reforms, tanking remains prevalent. Even more troubling is that the league’s worst teams continue to receive no real benefit, while playoff-caliber teams are landing the No. 1 overall pick—undermining the entire purpose of the draft.
SEE MORE: 2025 NBA Mock Draft — Shocking Lottery Results Shake Up Top of the First Round
While a complete overhaul of the draft system may not be necessary, the NBA should strongly consider restoring better odds for the league’s bottom teams.
Additionally, Play-In participants should be ineligible for the lottery, with their odds redistributed among the non-playoff teams.
2025 NBA Draft Order
1. Dallas Mavericks
2. San Antonio Spurs
3. Philadelphia 76ers
4. Charlotte Hornets
5. Utah Jazz
6. Washington Wizards
7. New Orleans Pelicans
8. Brooklyn Nets
9. Toronto Raptors
10. Houston Rockets (acquired from the Phoenix Suns)
11. Portland Trail Blazers
12. Chicago Bulls
13. Atlanta Hawks (acquired from the Sacramento Kings)
14. San Antonio Spurs (acquired from the Hawks)
15. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Miami Heat)
16. Orlando Magic
17. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Detroit Pistons)
18. Washington Wizards (via Memphis Grizzlies)
19. Brooklyn Nets (via Milwaukee Bucks)
20. Miami Heat (via Golden State Warriors)
21. Utah Jazz (via Minnesota Timberwolves)
22. Atlanta Hawks (Los Angeles Lakers)
23. Indiana Pacers
24. Oklahoma City (via Los Angeles Clippers)
25. Orlando Magic (via Denver Nuggets)
26. Brooklyn Nets (via New York Knicks)
27. Brooklyn Nets (via Houston Rockets)
28. Boston Celtics
29. Phoenix Suns (via Cleveland Cavaliers)
30. Los Angeles Clippers (via Oklahoma City Thunder)
31. Minnesota Timberwolves (via Utah Jazz)
32. Boston Celtics (via Washington Wizards)
33. Charlotte Hornets
34. Charlotte Hornets (via New Orleans Pelicans)
35. Philadelphia 76ers
36. Brooklyn Nets
37. Detroit Pistons (via Toronto Raptors)
38. San Antonio Spurs
39. Toronto Raptors (via Portland Trail Blazers)
40. Washington Wizards (via Phoenix Suns)
41. Golden State Warriors (via Miami Heat)
42. Sacramento Kings (via Chicago Bulls)
43. Utah Jazz (via Dallas Mavericks)
44. Oklahoma City Thunder (via Atlanta Hawks)
45. Chicago Bulls (via Sacramento Kings)
46. Orlando Magic
47. Milwaukee Bucks (via Detroit Pistons)
48. Memphis Grizzlies (via Golden State Warriors)
49. Cleveland Cavaliers (via Milwaukee Bucks)
50. New York Knicks (Memphis Grizzlies)
51. Los Angeles Clippers (via Minnesota Timberwolves)
52. Phoenix Suns (via Denver Nuggets)
53. Utah Jazz (via Los Angeles Clippers)
54. Indiana Pacers
55. Los Angeles Lakers
56. Memphis Grizzlies (via Houston Rockets)
57. Orlando Magic (via Boston Celtics)
58. Cleveland Cavaliers
59 Houston Rockets (via Oklahoma City Thunder)
