The New Orleans Hornets win the lottery

And the winner is… the Hornets? The same New Orleans Hornets that had to be bought out by the league to save its franchise; the same Hornets that were in fourth with a 13% chance of winning the lottery when the Charlotte Bobcats had a 25% chance; and the same Hornets team that lost their star player Eric Gordon for the majority of the season.

Yes it is the same franchise. Conspiracy? Maybe, but if you ask Anthony Davis, the favorite to be taken number one he won’t care, and he might not even know who won the lottery. No matter how tonight turned out it was never about a team, but about a young man who will try to help a franchise bounce back from near extinction.

Here is a simple solution to the conspiracy theory surrounding the lottery. The league owns the franchise, the franchise is reeling, they also want to put people in seats, so yes, I would say there was something fishy about this outcome, but if someone hands you the keys to a new Mercedes I think you might take them too.

With that theory intact it can then be said that the league intends to draft Davis to not only be the fresh face of the franchise on the court, but to also get people in the door and into seats.

Davis is lengthy and can alter shots from anywhere on the court as he displayed all year at Kentucky. His offensive game is still a little raw, but once he settles into his body and gets a little stronger, he will be able to battle inside as well as shoot it from 15 to 20 feet.

The part of his game that impresses me the most can’t be seen on the court. He plays hard on every possession, both offensive and defensively. He also displays a charisma and poise not usually found in a player his age or size. It would be easy for someone who is about to be drafted number one in the draft, and pretty much knew this all year to show up his opponents and disrespect his teamates, but that isn’t how Davis operates, which is refreshing to see from a star athlete.

The Hornets will soon get a player capable of turning their franchise around. Even if they did load the lotto, which I do think is wrong if it did in fact happen, no one will remember that in 15 years when Davis is nearing what could easily turn into a Hall of Fame career.