It may seem early to discuss the 2023 NBA Draft, especially since the 2022-2023 regular season has only just gone beyond its midway point. Even so, every year brings with it several highly coveted prospects. These are usually players developing their skills at American universities, oftentimes with one or two names standing out from the crop of NBA hopefuls. 2023 looks to feature a draft class with a twist. The player many pundits anticipate will be selected first overall in June is not only from outside the United States but isn’t even playing at one of the country’s main schools.

Frenchman Victor Wembanyama is a 19-year-old center (sometimes power forward) torching the LNB Pro A league in France, the premier basketball league in that country. Playing for the Metropolitans 92 of Levallois-Perret, Wembanyama’s skills and accomplishments have caught the eyes of NBA general managers, scouts, coaches, and now fans. A quick video of his exploits against Dijon on Jan. 18 is enough to convince anyone that the 7-foot-4 prospect has the potential to be a threat in the NBA.

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Let “Wembanmania” begin!

The NBA Lottery System

After several tries and variations of the lottery draft system, the league hopes that all the necessary lessons have been learned. In a nutshell, on May 15, 2023, the league will perform a lottery draft with team names, specifically clubs that failed to make the playoffs. In some instances, due to past trades between franchises, a really good team can actually have a high draft pick.

The three worst teams in the NBA, as per their win-loss tallies, have an equal 14 per cent chance of landing the number one spot. The fourth worst team has a 12.5 per cent chance, the fifth worst a 10.5 per cent chance, and so on. So which franchise might be fortunate enough to call up Victor Wembanyama’s name on draft night this coming June 22, 2023?

The Candidates

Houston Rockets

The Rockets have, at the time of writing, the single-worst record in the NBA (although it’s sadly a close race). The 10-35 Texas-based outfit is, unbelievably enough, in line to finish as the league’s basement dweller for the fourth consecutive year. That is a lot of pain for their fans to endure. Then again, if they win the lottery, they’ll get a special player who can give the team a push in the right direction.

Houston has the 28th-ranked offence (points per outing), the worst field goal efficiency, and the 25^th best defence. As with each of the three worst teams, Houston is currently +650.

Detroit Pistons

There’s no point beating around the bush: the current campaign is yet another failure for the Detroit Pistons. The last time the Motor City’s basketball club earned a playoff spot was four years ago when it finished an even 41-41, good for eighth in the East.

At 12-36, any ambitions of showing considerable metal are dashed. It feels as if the squad is perennially 3-7 in the last 10 outings. 24^th in scoring, 27^th in field goal shooting, 29^th in points conceded per game, 29^th in field goal shooting defence, etc. Clearly, the Pistons are a franchise in need of a spark on both ends of the floor, qualities Wembanyama is earning his reputation from. As a bottom three side, the Pistons are +650.

Charlotte Hornets

Not to be outdone by their Eastern Conference competitors, the Charlotte Hornets are not much better than the Pistons. As a matter of fact, as of Jan. 20, they rank one place higher than the Pistons by virtue of having played two games less, so they’ve lost two fewer (12-34). Not much to cheer about.

Back-to-back two-game series against the Raptors and the Celtics over an eight-day span was more than enough evidence that the squad needs help. One of their contests against Toronto and, impressively, another against Boston was quite competitive, but the talent is limited and they struggle mightily to close out the games they keep close. As the third of the NBA’s trio of basement dwellers, Charlotte also sits at +650.

San Antonio Spurs

The wild card of the bunch is the San Antonio Spurs. Were the regular season end today, they would rank 4^thworst in the NBA, just outside of the trio that gets equal 14 per cent chances in the lottery. That said, it isn’t as if they lag far behind. As of Jan. 20, their record is 14-31, and an abysmal 2-8 in their previous 10.

Interestingly, Gregg Popovich has his men playing respectable offence. Not great, but respectable. They’re 17^th in field goal efficiency and could crack the top 20 in points scored per contest if they improve their average by a measly 0.2. On the flip side, they are the only NBA club that concedes over 120 points a night (121.2) and have a league-worst defence against overall field goal shooting and three-point shooting. A 7-foot-4 athletic big man could certainly come in handy. San Antonio’s odds are slightly worse at +700.

Orlando Magic

We’ll include the Magic in the discussion even though they have the worst odds out of the top five candidates. Allow us to be crystal clear: the team is 16-28. They aren’t very good. A nasty losing streak coupled with a run of good fortune for the Spurs or Hornets, and the Magic may very well inadvertently cast a spell that places them in the top (bottom?) three. Charlotte’s odds are mildly worse than San Antonio’s at +750.