New Orleans Pelicans land 14th pick in 2023 NBA Draft

The 2023 NBA Draft Lottery results are officially in, and it looks like our New Orleans Pelicans will have the 14th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

This news should not come as much of a shock to anyone who has been following along during the pre-draft process. The Pelicans – as the team with the best record of all the lottery teams – had a 97.59% of drawing the 14th overall pick in the draft lottery.

There was some hope of another lottery miracle. In past years, New Orleans has defied the odds and landed the first overall pick (drafting future stars Anthony Davis and Zion Williamson with those selections).

However, this year, the odds were simply too great to overcome. This time around, the Pelicans only had a 2.41% chance of securing a top-4 pick and only a 0.5% chance of selecting number one overall.

Still, given how deep this class has been lauded to be, selecting 14th will give the Pelicans a shot at adding an impactful player to their already talent-rich cast of characters.

For those wondering, here is the official lottery order for the 2023 NBA Draft:

1. San Antonio Spurs

2. Charlotte Hornets

3. Portland Trail Blazers

4. Houston Rockets

5. Detroit Pistons

6. Orlando Magic

7. Indiana Pacers

8. Washington Wizards

9. Utah Jazz

10. Dallas Mavericks

11. Orlando Magic (from Chicago Bulls)

12. Oklahoma City Thunder

13. Toronto Raptors

14. New Orleans Pelicans

So who will the Pelicans look to select with their 14th overall pick? That will be the question we hope to provide some more context to over the next coming weeks of coverage. One thing is for certain, their three biggest areas of need right now are shooting, rim protection, and rim pressure creators (for the non-Williamson minutes).

Be sure to stay tapped into Pelican Debrief as we spend the next few weeks trying to figure out what the Pelicans will do with their first-round draft pick.