Sixers Draft Pick Tracker – March 4th, 2015

Overview:

Sixers Draft Pick Tracker

2015 Top-of-Draft Standings

Sixers pick (currently 2nd):

• Knicks lost (bad): The Knicks were destroyed by the Kings 124-86, putting them a a half game up on the Sixers in the race for the most ping pong balls.
• Lakers lost (bad): The Lakers lost a one point game to the Hornets, falling 104-103, dropping the Lakers to 3.5 games back of the idle Sixers.

Lakers pick (top 5 protected, currently 4th):

• Lakers lost (bad): The Lakers falling 1 point short against Charlotte was a real lost opportunity. The Lakers remain 3 wins behind Orlando for the 5th slot and are now 5 wins behind both Denver and Sacramento for 6th.
• Denver won (bad): Denver beat the now-struggling Bucks, who have lost 3 in a row. The win puts that coveted 6th slot closer to being out of reach, with the Nuggets 5 wins over the Lakers with 23 games remaining.
• Sacramento won (bad): Another bad outcome for that Lakers pick, although this was largely a scheduling win. The Kings beating the Knicks wasn’t all that surprising, but by 38? Ouch, New York. Ouch.

Miami pick (top 10 protected, currently 16th):

• Boston lost (good): The loss drops Boston, currently in the 9th slot, to 23-35, 3 wins behind Miami.
• Jazz won (bad): Add another team to the ridiculously long list of teams to watch for the Miami pick. The Jazz have now won 3 in a row and 7 of their last 10, putting them in the 10th slot and at 24 wins. They’re a real threat to pass Miami, which becomes a problem if Miami misses the playoffs and are passed by enough teams to push them into the top 10.
• Charlotte won (good): Again, this is all fluid. With how tight this section of the standings has become, there might come a point where Charlotte winning is bad and Utah winning is good. The Charlotte win puts them at 25-33 and 1 win behind Miami. To point out how close all of this is: Charlotte (25-33) is 12th and in the lottery, while Miami (26-33) is 16th and in the playoffs.

Oklahoma City pick (top 18 protected, currently 18th):

• Milwaukee lost (good): Milwaukee’s losing streak puts more room between them (32-28, 17th) and Oklahoma City (33-27, 18th). I don’t worry too much about Milwaukee passing OKC, but losses are good nonetheless.
• Washington lost (good): Washington fell to Chicago, and are now only a half-game (1 win) ahead of OKC for the 19th spot, at which point the Sixers would get that pick. The flip-side: it now becomes more important for Washington to continue to stumble, as it puts the Bulls 5 wins up on OKC.

Tonight’s games:

• Sixers @ OKC: Huge game, both for the Sixers pick and the OKC pick. Kevin Durant will not be playing, and there is no word yet on Russell Westbrook’s status.
• Knicks @ Pacers: A Knicks win would be good on two fronts, as it would help the Sixers pick plus also help Indy pass Miami. I wouldn’t count on it, though.
• Phoenix @ Orlando: A Phoenix win helps the Lakers pick.
• Utah @ Boston: Classic win-win. Two teams playing better of late who could theoretically pass Miami and push that pick into the top-10, so at least one of them will lose.
• Charlotte @ Brooklyn: Another win-win, as either team winning pushes them closer to passing Miami.
• Detroit @ New Orleans: You want New Orleans to lose, as it keeps them further from knocking OKC out of the playoffs. Detroit shouldn’t be too much of a factor, as I’m not sure I see them being good enough to pass Miami (bad outcome) or bad enough that the Lakers could catch them (good outcome).
• Lakers @ Miami: Really pull for a Lakers win here, as it would help the Sixers pick, help the Lakers pick, and (potentially) help the Heat pick.
• Denver @ Minnesota: Pulling hard for the Wolves here. A Wolves win helps the Sixers pick and also helps keep hope alive for the Lakers pick, as Denver currently sits 6th.
• Sacramento @ San Antonio: Rooting for the Spurs, as Sacramento is 7th, a (long shot) possibility of being passed by the Lakers. Sacramento is playing on the road, on a back-to-back, against a superior opponent, so this should be money in the bank.
• Milwaukee @ Golden State: Milwaukee losses help the OKC pick. Again, back to back, on the road, against a superior opponent, should be an easy win for Golden State.