Once again, the NBA draft lottery was unkind to the Indiana Pacers as they will stand pat with the 10th pick in the NBA draft this June.
The fact that the Pacers didn't move up is no surprise, but the disappointment came when the New Jersey Nets fell from the top spot to number three in the draft order. Any hopes of the Nets taking John Wall and then moving Devin Harris to the Pacers bounced away like a stray ping pong ball.
Plus, the two big winners in the draft started the night in the same zone in the Eastern Conference as the Pacers. John Wall instantly helps the Washington Wizards and the young talent they have to put out on the floor. Obviously there are still issues there with Gilbert Arenas and some of their young bigs, but the Wiz are back in business and moving in the right direction.
Philly also has some nice young players and adding Evan Turner solidifies the roster even more. Plus, Larry Brown may be even more inclined to return to Philly which might be just as valuable as adding Turner.
So, all in all, a pretty crummy draft lottery for the Pacers. Short of moving back a couple of spots, things went about as bad as possible. Now it's time for Larry Bird and David Morway to take care of the offseason moves that aren't out their control to make some moves to improve the Pacers standing in the Eastern Conference.
The one bright spot for the Pacers was Danny Granger's white James Bond jacket with John Wall jersey lining. If you missed it, here's a pic. Granger's immediate reaction upon seeing the Pacers logo for the 10th pick summed up the struggles of the franchise. He simply put his head in his hands on the table and just kept shaking his head.