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The bulk of the 2024-25 NBA Draft order was determined on the final day of the NBA regular season. At that point, most of the teams that missed the playoffs were locked into their lottery slots while most of the teams that made it were locked into their actual draft positions. And after the NBA announced various tiebreakers on Monday, we have most of the 2025 draft order settled.
When the regular season ended, we knew that the three teams sharing the best odds for the No. 1 pick and the right to draft Cooper Flagg — who officially declared for the draft on Monday — were the Jazz, Wizards and Hornets, but now, the back half of the first round is set and the end of the lottery is mostly in place as well.
When two teams in the lottery are tied, they split the lottery odds of the two slots in half and share them. A random drawing then determines who gets the higher overall slot, which is where the teams are ordered after the top four are determined. When two playoff teams are tied, however, the league just holds a random drawing to determine who gets the better pick.
As a result of the Play-In Tournament, the Bulls and Mavericks split the lottery odds at No. 11 and No. 12, with a random drawing determining who winds up in each position. The same thing occurs at No. 13 and No. 14, but with a slight twist. Atlanta’s original pick belongs to San Antonio thanks to the Dejounte Murray trade. However, Atlanta gets Sacramento’s pick if it lands at No. 13 or later.
Here are the results of the five tiebreaker drawings, which were conducted on Monday.
- The Suns won a tiebreaker with the Trail Blazers
- The Mavericks won a tiebreaker with the Bulls
- The Kings won a tiebreaker with the Hawks
- The Grizzlies won a three-way tiebreaker with the Bucks and Warriors, who will be slotted in that order
- The Lakers won a four-way tiebreaker with the Pacers Clippers and Nuggets, who will be slotted in that order
Outside of the lottery, the Heat come in at No. 15 after making the playoffs. That sends their pick to Oklahoma City, as it was lottery-protected. Finally, Memphis making the playoffs sends its pick to Washington thanks to the Marcus Smart trade, which also included a lottery-protected choice. So, with all of that settled, here is where the NBA Draft order sits before our random drawing tiebreakers and the upcoming lottery.
2025 NBA Draft Lottery odds
*pick belongs to 76ers if 1-6, Thunder if 7-30
**pick belongs to Kings if 1-12, Hawks if 13-30
When is the NBA Draft Lottery?
The 2025 NBA Draft Lottery will be held on May 12. That is when we will find who will get the No. 1 pick and chance to draft Flagg. For now, we have a good chunk of the order determined.
Something you likely noticed is that barely any playoff teams control their own picks. Outside of the top 12, only the Indiana Pacers, Orlando Magic and Boston Celtics currently control the picks that originally belonged to them. That is a function of the all-in NBA we currently exist within. Most of those teams at the back end of the first round traded draft picks for veteran help at some point in the recent past. They’re now paying for that privilege.
All told, we are headed for a first round of the postseason in which more than half of the 30 picks in the first round could change hands before the draft even begins. Add all of the trading that inevitably comes during the draft itself and barely anybody outside of the lottery uses their own picks anymore. This order represents where we sit now, but when the dust settles, expect many more of these picks to change hands.
