At the end of the 1982-83 season, the Houston Rockets were finishing a very disappointing season. Less than three years removed from the NBA Finals, the Rockets were in contention for the NBA?s worst record. The light at the end of the tunnel? By finishing so poorly, the Rockets ?earned? the opportunity to draft the much-heralded Ralph Sampson with the first overall pick in the 1983 draft.

But then a funny thing happened. The Rockets did not get much better during the ?83-84 season, and found themselves once more out of the playoffs as the season wound down. They continued to lose, and they were again one of the worst teams in the league. Were they worn out from another disappointing season? Did they give up on their coach? Or did they figure out that another season with the worst record would give them the top pick yet again, and the chance to install the ultimate ?Twin Towers?, Sampson and Akeem Olajuwon?

Regardless of the Rockets? motivation, they did indeed get the top pick again, and selected hometown hero Olajuwon. Fans, sportswriters, and even casual observers all wondered if the late-season losing trend that the Rockets endured could possibly have had anything to do with the chance to draft Olajuwon. The NBA saw a definite problem ? by simply giving the top pick to the team that finishes with the worst record, they reward a team for losses, and inadvertently provide incentive for bad teams to lose games on purpose.

Enter the Draft Lottery. The Lottery was put in place in time for the 1985 draft. This was fortunate, because 1985 saw the arrival of perhaps the best Big Man prospect in a generation in Patrick Ewing. So which team won that first lottery, with the guaranteed championships that would accompany Ewing?s arrival? By an amazing coincidence, the team from the nation?s biggest market ? the New York Knicks ? won that lottery. This despite the fact that they had the best record among non-playoff teams ? indicating that they were the least needy of the original Lottery?s seven teams. The team with the worst record? The Golden State Warriors, who fell all the way to #7 ? the lowest possible pick.

You didn?t have to be Oliver Stone to see a dark conspiracy behind the whole event. The best prospect in a generation, a new procedure put in place by the NBA, and the top market wins the prize. Stories abounded that the NBA placed the Knicks? envelope in a freezer prior to the event, ensuring that David Stern would know which one to pick, and that the Knicks would return to their glory days. But it doesn't stop there - many years have had a "story" from the lottery. That is, a plausible scenario that would indicate why a team moved up to the top of the draft board.