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The order for the 2018 NBA draft has been set following the NBA draft lottery on Tuesday, and the ping pong balls bounced in the Phoenix Suns’ favor as they will be selecting No. 1 overall on June 21. This marks the first time in franchise history the Suns will be selecting No. 1 overall.
The last time the Suns selected in the top-three was in 1987 when they selected Armen Gilliam. Gilliam had a successful 12-year career as an NBA journeyman, but he never lived up to his draft hype.
However, the Suns have had success with their more recent lottery picks like T.J. Warren, Dragan Bender, Devin Booker and Josh Jackson. They’ll hope to continue trending in the right direction.
Rounding out the top three are, in order, the Sacramento Kings, who jumped five spots, and the Atlanta Hawks, who jumped one spot.
While the Los Angeles Lakers’ weren’t present at the NBA draft lottery, their pick was and it ended up with the Philadelphia 76ers at the No. 10 slot. If the pick fell between Nos. 2-5, the Boston Celtics would have conveyed the Lakers’ pick, adding to their stockpile of assets. Luckily, that wasn’t the case.
Despite not having their own first-round pick, the Lakers will still have a first round selection in the upcoming draft after acquiring the Cleveland Cavaliers’ pick at the trade deadline in February. The Lakers will have picks No. 25 and No. 47 (via Denver).
Below is the full order for the 2018 NBA draft.
1. Phoenix Suns
2. Sacramento Kings
3. Atlanta Hawks
7. Chicago Bulls
8. Cleveland Cavaliers (via Brooklyn)
10. Philadelphia 76ers (via Los Angeles)
12. Los Angeles Clippers (via Detroit)
13. Los Angeles Clippers
14. Denver Nuggets
16. Phoenix Suns (via Miami)
17. Milwaukee Bucks
19. Atlanta Hawks (via Minnesota)
20. Minnesota Timberwolves (via OKC)
21. Utah Jazz
22. Chicago Bulls (via New Orleans)
23. Indiana Pacers
24. Portland Trailblazers
25. Los Angeles Lakers (via Cleveland)
26. Philadelphia 76ers
27. Boston Celtics
29. Brooklyn Nets (via Toronto)
30. Atlanta Hawks (via Houston)
The 2018 NBA draft will take place on June 21 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Until then, we’ll have all of your Lakers draft analysis and rumors right here.