Lady Luck did not shine on the Brooklyn Nets Wednesday night in the NBA Draft Lottery, leaving them without a first-round pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
“I guess, going in, I didn’t expect to get the pick, so it’s not a disappointment in my eyes,” Nets general manager Billy King said. “But if we’d gotten it, it would have been a nice bonus.”
The Nets had a 7.5 percent chance of getting the top pick, which went to the New Orleans Hornets, and a 25 percent chance of being in the top three. Had they been in the top three they would have kept their first-round pick. Landing at No. 6, however, meant the pick went to the Portland Trailblazers to complete the Gerald Wallace trade.
King indicated that the Nets, without a first-round pick, will use their salary cap space to try and add veteran players. The Nets also face the possibility of losing star point guard Deron Williams as a free agent this summer.