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Detroit Pistons fall to 5th in NBA draft lottery, Orlando Magic win top pick

Gonzaga center Chet Holmgren, right, battles for a rebound with Memphis center Jalen Duren during the second half of an NCAA tournament game on March 19 in Portland, Ore. (AP file photo)

CHICAGO — The Orlando Magic won the NBA draft lottery Tuesday night and landed the No. 1 overall pick for the first time since they got Dwight Howard in 2004.

It’s the fourth time lottery luck struck for the Magic, who won in back-to-back years in 1992 and 1993, taking Shaquille O’Neal and then trading the rights to Chris Webber for Penny Hardaway.

Orlando finished with the worst record in the Eastern Conference at 22-60 and missed the playoffs for the eighth time in 10 years. But they got a huge win in the lottery, where they had a 14% chance of landing the top pick.

Duke’s Paolo Banchero, Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren, Purdue’s Jaden Ivey and Auburn’s Jabari Smith are widely considered the most likely candidates to be taken first. The draft is June 23 in New York.

Oklahoma City got the second pick, followed by Houston and Sacramento. The Kings moved up from the No. 7 spot entering the lottery.

Detroit picks fifth, with Indiana, Portland, New Orleans and Washington rounding out the top 10. The rest of the lottery results are: New York, Oklahoma City, Charlotte and Cleveland.

The lottery, with 14 ping pong balls numbered 1 through 14 placed into a hopper, sets the first four picks. The remainder of the non-playoff teams go in reverse order of their finish.

Houston, Orlando and Detroit had the best odds of winning the lottery at 14%.

Banchero, Holmgren and Smith decided to turn pro after one college season while Ivey spent two years at Purdue.

The 6-foot-10, 250-pound Banchero was viewed as a likely one-and-done player before he arrived at Duke from Seattle as part of a talented recruited class.

With his strength and perimeter skills, Banchero averaged 17.2 points and 7.8 rebounds. He scored 20 or more 15 times while failing to reach double figures only twice in 39 games.

Holmgren, a 7-footer with the ability to pass and handle the ball like a guard, was one of the most highly touted recruits ever for Gonzaga.

Smith also lived up to his billing as one of the top recruits ever for Auburn. The Tigers earned their first No. 1 ranking and spent three weeks in the top spot.

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