The 2026 NBA Draft is coming up on May 10, and everyone involved in franchises impacted by it are all starting to freak out. That being said, the recent NHL Draft Lottery should give Sacramento Kings' fans hope as the Toronto Maple Leafs went fifth and ended up with the number one draft pick.
Yes, the Kings had a terrible season in 2025-2026, the second worst since the franchise moved to Sacramento. They finished with a record of 22 wins and 60 losses as well as a 16-game losing streak, which was the worst in the history of the team. Go Kings?
All of that being said, Sacramento kind of pulled out of the nosedive after the end of that record-setting slide. Their win percentage started rising as the young guns stepped to the plate and began to find their feet in the league while gelling as a unit on the court. There was actual hope in Sactown.
While this slight turnaround was great for the culture, it wasn't so good for the upcoming Draft Lottery. These unexpected wins pushed them out of the top three spots, giving them a lottery position at fifth place. This dramatically decreased their chances of getting a top three draft pick.
The Leafs have created hope for the Kings
Oddly enough, the NHL Draft Lottery just happened. In this case, the team selecting fifth was the Leafs. They only had an 8.5% chance of getting the first overall pick, yet that is exactly what happened. Toronto will likely select Gavin McKenna, an incredible left wing out of Penn State.
Sacramento is in an oddly similar position to the Leafs, fifth in the draft lottery with incredibly low odds of getting that number one pick. But Toronto just proved that the odds don't matter. The Canucks had the best chance of getting the number on pick, but will now choose third.
Another California-based team, the San Jose Sharks, did even better. They were ninth in the NHL Draft Lottery with a 5.0% chance of getting the first pick. The Sharks ended up with the second draft pick, meaning they have a shot at McKenna or Swedish winger Ivar Stenberg. Not too shabby.
Going into the NBA Draft Lottery, the odds are what they are. What they're not is set in stone. Anything can happen, and the Kings could still end up with a top three pick. The Kings have an 11.5% chance of getting the number one pick, which is better odds than the Leafs had.
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