The New York Knicks season came to an end last night with a 110-98 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. That put their final record at 29-53, the fourth straight season in which New York has lost 50+ games.

The Knicks will enter next season with a new head coach as Jeff Hornacek was relieved of his duties after the game. Their best player, Kristaps Porzingis, could miss half of next season recovering from a torn ACL.

So many fans of the Knicks will have their eyes glued to the television for the Nba Draft Lottery which will take place on May 15.

New York finished with the ninth-worst record thus giving them the ninth-best odds at the top pick. Last night’s win pushed them out of a tie for the eighth-worst record with the Brooklyn Nets where a coin flip would have decided who would have the eighth-best odds.

Chances of where their selection will be

  • Top pick: 1.7 percent
  • Top-three pick: 6.1 percent
  • Ninth or tenth pick: 93.5 percent
  • 11th pick: 0.4 percent

Had the Knicks lost last night and then won the coin toss with the Nets, they would have owned a 2.8 percent chance at the number one selection and a 9.9 percent shot at a top-three pick.

It wouldn’t be the first time though that a team with such long odds to acquire the first pick gets it though if New York were to win the lottery.

Both the Chicago Bulls in 2008 and the Cavaliers in 2014 won the Draft Lottery with the same 1.7 percent chance. In 1993, the Orlando Magic won despite having just a 1.52 percent chance of doing so.

Recent successful ninth and tenth overall draft selections

While Knicks’ fans hope to beat the odds and move up in the lottery, this year’s draft is seen as a deep one.

The chances are still extremely likely that they will end up selecting ninth or tenth.

Some players who went on to have strong careers (or still are) after being selected ninth overall are Andre Drummond (2012), Kemba Walker (2011), Gordon Hayward (2010), DeMar DeRozan (2009), Joakim Noah (2007), Andre Iguodala (2004), Amare Stoudemire (2002), Shawn Marion (1999), Dirk Nowitzki (1998), and Tracy McGrady (1997).

All of those players have appeared in an All-Star Game, and one (McGrady) is already in the Basketball Hall of Fame (Nowitzki will follow as soon as he’s eligible).

Players who became established in the league after being drafted tenth overall are C.J. McCollum (2013), Paul George (2010), Brook Lopez (2008), Caron Butler (2002), Joe Johnson (2001), Jason Terry (1999), and Paul Pierce (1998).