Celtics' 2013 trade with Nets pays off with No. 1 pick

The Boston Celtics have won the NBA draft lottery, capitalizing on a trade they made with the Brooklyn Nets four years ago.

The Los Angeles Lakers were other big winners, moving up one spot to second to hold onto their pick. They would have had to trade it to Philadelphia if it fell outside the top three.

The Celtics will go from No. 1 seed to No. 1 pick after their 25 per cent chance of winning came through Tuesday night. They open the Eastern Conference final at home on Wednesday against Cleveland.

The Toronto Raptors, who finished third in the East, pick 23rd.

The Celtics finished dismantling the team that beat the Lakers to win the 2008 championship when they traded Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to Brooklyn on the night of the 2013 draft. Boston acquired the Nets' 2014, 2016 and 2018 first-round picks, as well as the rights to swap in 2017.

The timing was perfect for the Celtics, as Brooklyn finished with the worst record in the league.

"And look what I leave behind for the Celts on my way out (No. 1) pick," Pierce wrote on Twitter.

Their victory made it three straight years the team with the best odds has won the lottery, after going the previous decade without a victory. Minnesota snapped that streak by getting eventual rookie of the year Karl-Anthony Towns in 2015 and Philadelphia emerged with Ben Simmons last season.

The draft is considered a strong one, loaded with point guards such as Markelle Fultz, Lonzo Ball and De'Aaron Fox.

First Round:

• 1. Boston (from Brooklyn)
• 2. L.A. Lakers
• 3. Philadelphia (from Sacramento)
• 4. Phoenix
• 5. Sacramento (from Philadelphia)
• 6. Orlando
• 7. Minnesota
• 8. New York
• 9. Dallas
• 10. Sacramento(from New Orleans)
• 11. Charlotte
• 12. Detroit
• 13. Denver
• 14. Miami
• 15. Portland
• 16. Chicago
• 17. Milwaukee
• 18. Indiana
• 19. Atlanta
• 20. Portland (from Memphis via Denver and Cleveland)
• 21. Oklahoma City
• 22. Brooklyn (from Washington)
• 23. Toronto (from LA Clippers via Milwaukee)
• 24. Utah
• 25. Orlando (from Toronto)
• 26. Portland (from Cleveland)
• 27. Brooklyn (from Boston)
• 28. L.A. Lakers (from Houston)
• 29. San Antonio
• 30. Utah (from Golden State)

Second Round

• 31. Atlanta (from Brooklyn)
• 32. Phoenix
• 33. Orlando (from L.A. Lakers)
• 34. Sacramento (from Philadelphia via New Orleans)
• 35. Orlando
• 36. Philadelphia (from New York via Utah and Toronto)
• 37. Boston (from Minnesota via Phoenix)
• 38. Chicago (from Sacramento via Cleveland)
• 39. Philadelphia (from Dallas)
• 40. New Orleans
• 41. Charlotte
• 42. Utah (from Detroit)
• 43. Houston (from Denver)
• 44. New York (from Chicago)
• 45. Houston (from Portland)
• 46. Philadelphia (from Miami via Atlanta)
• 47. Indiana
• 48. Milwaukee
• 49. Denver (from Memphis via Oklahoma City)
• 50. Philadelphia (from Atlanta)
• 51. Denver (from Oklahoma City)
• 52. Washington
• 53. Boston (from Cleveland)
• 54. Phoenix (from Toronto)
• 55. Utah
• 56. Boston (from L.A. Clippers)
• 57. Brooklyn (from Boston)
• 58. New York (from Houston)
• 59. San Antonio
• 60. Atlanta (from Golden State via Philadelphia and Utah)