Looks like all that tanking paid off after all. Well, it hasn’t yet, but at least it’s set up the Golden State Warriors for a possible payout.
The Warriors won a tie-breaking coin flip with the Toronto Raptors to sneak into the No. 7 slotted team at the NBA draft lottery Friday, improving their chances greatly of keeping their first round pick.
Because of a trade a few season back, if the Warriors wind up with the No. 1 through No. 7 pick in the draft, it’s theirs to keep. If the Warriors wind up with the No. 8 pick or worse, it will belong to the Utah Jazz.
By winning the drawing, the Warriors will have a 72. 4 percent chance of finishing the lottery among the top seven, and therefore keeping the pick. Had the Warriors lost , their chances would have fallen to 12.5 percent of jumping into the top three, which the Raptors have now as the No. 8 seed.
The draft lottery will be held May 30.
For more in depth discussion and analysis of the Golden State Warriors, please check out Golden State of Mind.