The Atlanta Hawks rocketed up the board to grab the No. 1 pick in this year’s NBA draft, winning the lottery for the first time in franchise history.
The Hawks, 36-46 this season for a 10th place finish in the Eastern Conference, had just a 3% chance to win the lottery, the fifth-lowest odds by a team to win the No. 1 pick since the lottery began in 1985.
The Washington Wizards, Houston Rockets and San Antonio Spurs rounded out the top four. The Detroit Pistons, owners of the league’s worst record this year, fell to No. 5. The draft is June 26-27 in Brooklyn.
The Hawks haven’t won a postseason series since a surprising run to the Eastern Conference finals in 2021. They got knocked out in the first round in 2022 and 2023 and didn’t advance past the play-in tournament this season.
Atlanta has some big decisions to make this offseason, including whether to break up its backcourt of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. General manager Landry Fields can build with the No. 1 pick. French wing Zaccharie Risacher is the highest ranked prospect per ESPN’s most recent big board, however this year’s class has been defined thus far by its lack of a consensus No. 1 pick.
Washington and Detroit had the best chances to land the top pick at 14%.
San Antonio landed a generational player last year in Victor Wembanyama. The franchise that previously took David Robinson and Tim Duncan with the No. 1 overall pick got its next great big man, and all the Frenchman did was turn in one of the best rookie seasons in NBA history.
The No. 1 pick could once again come from France, whether it’s center Alex Sarr or Risacher, but that’s far from a certainty. UConn guard Stephon Castle and Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard and Rob Dillingham are both expected to be off the board within the first few selections.
The Associated Press and ESPN Stats & Information research contributed to this story.