The Golden State Warriors' tank job to preserve their lottery pick took another step forward on Friday, as the Warriors have reportedly won a random drawing with the Toronto Raptors to break a tie for the seventh spot in the 2012 NBA Draft Lottery. The Warriors must stay in the top seven to keep their pick.
The Warriors and Raptors had identical 23-43 records, so a random drawing was required to break the tie for the seventh-worst record. By winning, the Warriors not only hold one more ping-pong ball combination to receive the number one pick, but they will also have a higher selection if neither team leapfrogs into the top three. If the lottery holds, the Warriors will pick seventh and the Raptors will pick eighth.
The only way the Warriors can lose their pick is if a team lower than them gets lucky and jumps into the top three. As our Tom Ziller noted earlier, there is only a 28 percent chance that happens.
There were two other coin flips on Friday to break ties for draft position. The Cleveland Cavaliers won a flip against the New Orleans Hornets to get into the No. 3 slot, according to owner Dan Gilbert. It remains unclear who won a flip between the Sacramento Kings and New Jersey Nets for the No. 5 slot.
For more on the 2012 NBA Draft lottery, visit this StoryStream.