Usually, very little attention is given to the worst teams in the NBA, but this season is different.
Over in France, 7-foot-2 Victor Wembanyama is awaiting his chance to enter the NBA, and some lucky team that looks awful right now will strike it rich and get the No. 1 pick in next year’s draft, which it will almost certainly use to select him.
Victor Wembanyama led France to a 2-0 record in the FIBA World Cup qualifying window with another big outing against Bosnia today. 19 points, 4 rebounds, 2 blocks in 24 minutes in a 36 point blowout win for the projected No. 1 pick. pic.twitter.com/TCpyMhkIGi
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) November 14, 2022
So far, these two teams appear to have the best chance of winning that top pick.
1. Houston Rockets
Houston is 2-12 right now, which is the worst record in the NBA, and if that holds up, it could end up holding the golden ticket that would yield Wembanyama.
Second-year guard Jalen Green has been playing well, but the team has very little in the way of support for him.
The Rockets are currently 26th in offensive rating and 29th in defensive rating, and there is no indication they will end up as anything more than a very bad team.
Wembanyama could continue something of a tradition of productive big men they have had over the years, starting with Moses Malone in the late 1970s and early 1980s, Hakeem Olajuwon later in the 1980s and 1990s and Yao Ming in the 2000s.
2. Detroit Pistons
The Pistons may be even better positioned than Houston to get the No. 1 pick, as they don’t have a semi-explosive player like Green.
Cade Cunningham, 2021’s top draft pick, isn’t panning out, and their best player, Bojan Bogdanovic, has been rumored to be on the trading block.
Detroit hasn’t won a playoff series since 2008, and Wembanyama would give the franchise and its fans a much-needed shot in the arm.
NEXT: 2 NBA Players Currently Playing On A Bargain Contract