How will NBA draft lottery tiebreakers be decided?
This season, there are six sets of teams that will need tiebreakers to finalize their draft position or their spot in the lottery.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are among teams who will have to wait to know exactly what odds they’ll have in the draft lottery. They are tied with the Cleveland Cavaliers for the fourth-worst record in the NBA.
Oklahoma City, Cleveland and the other teams who have a record that is equal to another team’s will have their draft or lottery spot determined by a coinflip, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony.
Givony tweeted that the coinflips will take place on May 25 early in the day.
Source: coinflips to determine the following tiebreakers for the 2021 NBA draft order will be conducted on Tuesday, May 25 in the early afternoon (ET). Big day for lottery teams. https://t.co/iws03G1jvQ
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) May 17, 2021
As Bobby Marks tweeted, the Thunder and Cavaliers are tied for fourth-best odds and the Orlando Magic while the New Orleans Pelicans and Sacramento Kings are tied for eight.
The coin flip will determine where these teams land in the draft lottery.
Depending on play-in results, the Charlotte Hornets and San Antonio Spurs could end up tied for 11th. If they do not make the playoffs, their lottery fates will also be decided via coin flip.
The New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks are tied for the 19th pick, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and Knicks are tied for the 21st pick and the Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets are tied for the 25th pick.
The coin flip will determine where these teams draft.
Oklahoma City won a tiebreaker last year, but that pick was conveyed to the Philadelphia 76ers.
