For our second weekly edition of Four Random Lottery Questions, we’ll have James McNeill and Nick Denning answering questions. James’ responses are preceded by “J:”, and Nick’s responses are preceded by “N:”. This week’s questions have been submitted by our own James Plowright.
1.Which current lottery team is the biggest attraction for free agents?
J: Dallas. I think it’s pretty clear that Dallas is the free agent favorite, and that’s nothing new. Thanks to Mark “Moneybags” Cuban, this team will always compete in free agency, but on top of that, they have some solid veterans and a great coach in Rick Carlisle. Carlisle is the kind of guy who could draw players in, and ultimately money is the beginning and end of the conversation in free agency (and Dallas could have close to 18 million in cap space).
N: Dallas. Big market team, coached by one of the better coaches in Rick Carlisle, and run by one of the most ambitious owners in sports. They have plenty of holes, but when healthy, Dirk is still a great player to play alongside with. They will have up to $15 million in cap space this off-season, and Cuban won’t have any problem going into the luxury tax. It wouldn’t surprise me to see Dallas on the short list for both Chris Paul and Dwight Howard.
2. If you were to create a team from only lottery-team players, what would your starting five be?
J: PG – Kyrie Irving. Strengths: Scoring, Ball Handling, and Passing
This is a no-brainer. Not because there aren’t other good lottery point guards, but because Kyrie is that good. The Cleveland point is redefining the position in a way that only Rajon Rondo and Chris Paul have come close to. Irving can score from anywhere on the court, run the P&R to perfection, create for other players and play smothering defense.
SG – Wes Matthews. Strengths: Defense and Perimeter Shooting
With Kyrie as my point, it’s important to add shooters and good defenders around him that will make him better. That is exactly why I chose Matthews. He spreads the floor as a shooter while also having the defensive cajones to guard the other team’s best offensive player every night. Matthews is also the kind of player who doesn’t need many touches to make an impact.
SF – Nicolas Batum. Strengths: Defense, Rebounding and Shooting
Batum is the kind of guy that defensive-minded wings should strive to play like. He isn’t a superstar, but he adds rebounding, defense and shooting. Nic is the kind of under-the-radar guy who helps hold a team together.
PF – Anthony Davis. Strengths: Defense, Rebounding and Offensive Efficiency
Anthony Davis at PF would add size and shot blocking to the frontcourt while also not needing many touches to make an offensive impact. Davis’ lack of necessary offensive touches and savvy on defense would also compliment the other big I have selected.
C – Demarcus Cousins. Strengths: Post Scoring, Post Passing and Rebounding
The Sacremento (for the time being anyway) center is not the best defender, but there aren’t many bigs that can score in the variety of ways that Cousins can. He would thrive receiving the ball from Irving and would get a large amount of touches in the post/P&R game due to the efficiency of the guys around him. Not to mention that he is one of the few young, truly elite, scoring bigs in the league.
N: PG – Kyrie Irving.
There are a number of good starting point guards playing for lottery teams (Lillard, Walker, Rubio, and even Wall), but Irving is on the brink of becoming a top-5 point guard if he isn’t already there.
SG – DeMar Derozan.
He needs to become a better three-point shooter, but his post All-Star break numbers (19 PPG, 46% FG%) are encouraging.
SF – Nicolas Batum.
Great defender, rebounds well, and can play multiple positions. Some might suggest he’s been on the verge of “breaking out” for a couple of years, but the production he gives Portland now shouldn’t be undervalued.
PF – Kevin Love.
He is one of the best scoring and rebounding big men in the league, and his injuries this season are why Minnesota ended up in the lottery and not the playoffs.
C – Al Jefferson.
He has been a consistent scorer and rebounder for Utah (and Minnesota as well), and he has managed to stay relatively healthy. He could be expendable for Utah due to the development of Favors and Kanter, but he will be a strong inside player for whichever team picks him up.
3. If you were an NBA coach looking for a job with a lottery team, which head coaching job would you take? 
J: Charlotte Bobcats – This crop of head coaching jobs is pretty lackluster in my opinion. Dallas is aging, Phoenix has no pieces, and Detroit has some guys but also bad contracts. So in a surprising turn of events, I believe Charlotte is the best coaching job in the lottery. Kemba Walker, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and company showed some real strides this year, and the team has ever-increasing cap space. If I was a coach predicting how a team would be built, I would trust Rich Cho to build a winner, and he is a big reason I think coaches should look long and hard at Charlotte.
N: Charlotte Bobcats – Kemba Walker had an encouraging second season, and while Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and Bismack Biyombo are projects, both showed at times that they have the potential to be good players. Gerald Henderson played the best basketball of his career past the All-Star break, and if he returns and continues playing as such, he is a good option to have at the two guard. Add in the potential $17 million in cap space and the top-5 pick in the draft, and there are reasons why coaches would want to come to Charlotte.
4. Which current lottery team is the closest to an NBA championship (I understand this question is as mad as it sounds)?
J: Portland Trail Blazers – This question is difficult and confusing, but I’d have to pick Portland just barely over Minnesota. This roster features the Rookie of the Year at the point, two guys who do it all on the wings (Wes Matthews and Nicolas Batum), and a dominant big man down low in LaMarcus Aldridge. Damian Lillard emerged as a legit star-in-the-making this year, and he has the players around him to help him succeed. This, in combination with the fan support and franchise support, makes it a destination for free agents. If this team can add some more pieces and keep drafting the way they have, they will soon compete in the West at least.
N: Picking any of these teams is a little bit maddening, but for the sake of entertaining the question, I’d go with Minnesota. What’s really holding them back is injuries. If Kevin Love and Ricky Rubio can stay healthy, and if they resign Nikola Pekovic, competing in the West is not out of the question. We’ve seen that teams like Memphis and Golden State can surprise the contenders given the right circumstances, so what is to say a healthy Timberwolves team couldn’t do the same?
Now should Dallas sign either Chris Paul or Dwight Howard, they will put themselves right into this conversation. Their most recent title was done with an aging group of players that weren’t widely projected to contend for a title, so adding Paul or Howard (preferably Paul) could put them back into a similar situation.
By James McNeill & Nick Denning
Twitter: @2NamezJames & @nickdenning
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