The Sacramento Kings have not had great lottery success recently. They were projected to get the first pick in the 2009 NBA Draft and ended up fourth; they were projected to be the third pick and ended up fifth in 2010; and they were projected to be the fifth pick and ended up seventh in 2011. The odds of having that kind of combined dropoff is less than 1% (HT to CloudyEyes for that tip).
Sacramento will now be on the fringe of the best that the NBA draft has to offer, which probably means it's time for a Geoff Petrie special. Petrie has been known to look beyond convention when he hasn't had an obvious pick laying ahead of him, and in the wasteland of the 2011 Draft, he might find plenty of young, off-the-beaten path talent that he can mold and develop into complimentary pieces for Tyreke Evans and Demarcus Cousins.
For more discussion and analysis of the Kings pick head over to Sactown Royalty to discuss. Stay with SB Nation Bay Area for complete coverage of the 2011 NBA Draft.