NBA Draft 2011: Cleveland Cavaliers land the number one draft pick
On Tuesday night, the Cleveland Cavaliers took the first step towards recovering from their post LeBron James hangover as they landed the top pick in the NBA Draft lottery. Cleveland’s pick, acquired from the Los Angeles Clippers,
turned into the first pick overall despite having only a 2.8 percent chance of doing so. The Cavaliers now have their second 1st Draft pick in the last 8 years, after drafting James from high school in 2003.
Apart from the first pick, Cleveland’s own lottery pick landed on the fourth spot, giving Cleveland two picks inside the top four. Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert couldn’t hide his delight at what turned out to be one of
the luckiest nights in the draft history for his franchise.
As announced earlier, Dan took his son, Nick Gilbert to the draft. Nick went up to the podium and pulled out a stunning win for the Cavaliers. Dan had always believed his son will be the lucky charm that the Cavs needed. The 14-year
old has battled with Neurofibromatosis all his life, a nerve disease that causes tumours to grow anywhere in the patient’s body at any time. His father refers to Nick as his “hero” for fighting through it since he was a baby.
"It's sort of Nick fashion. He has been doing it his whole life to some degree. I'm proud of him. I proud of the way he carried himself and I am very excited for the fans of Cleveland, Ohio who have been through a very, very rough
year," Dan Gilbert said. "They deserve it more than anybody and they have some good hope now."
The Minnesota Timberwolves won the second pick, after having a 25 percent chance of winning the first. It was another addition in a long list of draft night disappointments for the Timberwolves, who have to be considered one of
the unluckiest teams in the league.
The two teams are expected to chose between Kyrie Irving of Duke and Derrick Williams of Arizona, a point guard and a power forward respectively. Cleveland have the first pick, and Minnesota will probably settle for whoever is
left between the two.
However, the league’s labour disputes mean that the next season is uncertain. As such many young players have opted not to declare for this year’s draft, resulting in a somewhat shortage of talent. Therefore it was important to
get the top picks this year and Cleveland will be delighted at having two in the top 4.
The other picks in the top 5 were rounded off by the Utah Jazz, who won the third pick, and the Toronto Raptors, who landed fifth.
Following is a list of the Draft picks awarded.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers (From Los Angeles Clippers)
2. Minnesota Timberwolves
3. Utah Jazz (From New Jersey Nets)
4. Cleveland Cavaliers
5. Toronto Raptors
6. Washington Wizards
7. Sacramento Kings
8. Detroit Pistons
9. Charlotte Bobcats
10. Milwaukee Bucks
11. Golden State Warriors
12. Utah Jazz
13. Phoenix Suns
14. Houston Rockets
15. Indiana Pacers
16. Philadelphia 76ers
17. New York Knicks
18. Washington Wizards (From Atlanta Hawks)
19. Charlotte Bobcats (From New Orleans via Portland)
20. Minnesota Timberwolves (From Memphis Grizzlies via Utah Jazz)
21. Portland Trail Blazers
22. Denver Nuggets
23. Houston Rockets (From Orlando magic via Phoenix Suns)
24. Oklahoma City Thunder
25. Boston Celtics
26. Dallas Mavericks
27. New Jersey (From L.A. Lakers)
28. Chicago Bulls (From Miami via Toronto)
29. San Antonio Spurs
30. Chicago Bulls
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