The Golden State Warriors entered Mother's Day on Sunday ready for those festivities, but also with their mind on another important event: the NBA draft lottery.
At noon Pacific Time, the Warriors would find out exactly where their first-round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft would land in June. Their 37-45 record gave them the 11th-best odds for the first-overall pick — a 2% chance, to be exact — and they had a 9.4% chance to jump into the top four as a whole.
As NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum began opening the envelopes, the anticipation was at a high when Tatum reached the 11th slot without any previous team jumping into the top four yet.
Alas, the ping pong balls were not in favor of the Warriors. Tatum opened the 11th-pick envelope to reveal the Golden State Warriors, meaning they will stay at that slot come June 23.
The Chicago Bulls and Memphis Grizzlies ended up being the two teams to jump into the top four from the 9th and 6th positions, respectively, while the Nets and Kings both fell multiple spots to the 6th and 7th picks.
The Clippers were perhaps the luckiest team, snagging the 5th pick from the Pacers thanks to the Ivica Zubac trade after the Pacers dropped from the 2nd-best odds to No. 5. Finally, the Jazz jumped up two spots to earn the second pick, and the Washington Wizards won the lottery for the first overall pick, marking the first time since 2018 that the team with the worst record won the first pick.
It may not have been as crazy a lottery as some previous years — see the Mavericks jumping 10 spots for No. 1 last year or the Hawks jumping 9 spots for No. 1 in 2024 — but there were some interesting results nonetheless.
What Options Do The Warriors Have At 11?
Though luck wasn't on the Warriors' side on Sunday, it doesn't mean they should be upset with their position by any means.
This year's draft class was hailed by ESPN's Bobby Marks as the deepest we've seen since the legendary 1996 draft that included 10 total All-Stars and Hall of Famers like Kobe Bryant, Allen Iverson, Steve Nash, and Ray Allen.
At pick 11, the options are currently not very clear, as any number of players could be on the board depending on how the top 10 plays out, but there is certainly going to be some quality players available.
One of the players most often projected to the Warriors at 11 has been Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg. Coming off a national championship, Lendeborg was incredible in his lone season in a power conference. However, his age raises questions, as he'll turn 24 years old by the time the season starts, while the majority of the top 10 will likely be freshman that are no older than 20 years old.
In addition to the reportedly deep class, the Warriors could also potentially wield the pick as a trade chip if they find an offer they like, especially if it means landing an All-Star or All-NBA type of player, such as Kawhi Leonard.
Importantly, Steve Kerr just agreed to a new contract yesterday to return as head coach, meaning the Warriors can ensure the coaching staff and front office will be on the same page about both prospect evaluation and trade proposals moving forwards.