Tomorrow at 5:30 PM PT on ESPN, the 2011 NBA Draft Lottery will occur.  So how does the lottery work?

The lottery is only used to figure out the Top 3 picks while the rest is then sorted by record.  This means that while a team can make a large leap to the Top 3, they can only fall 3 picks.

After the jump, the odds.

Here are the odds for the Kings:

1st: 7.6%

2nd: 8.4%

3rd: 9.5%

5th: 26.1%

6th: 38.6%

7th: 9.3%

8th: 0.4%

Under the current lottery system implemented in 1994, the Kings have been in the lottery 10 times (with this being the 11th).  They have always gotten slotted with the pick that they had the highest chance to get, which this year is the 6th at 38.6%.  Hopefully Mayor Kevin Johnson can work some more of his magic and buck the trend.

Also for tomorrow, here is the order you WANT to hear if you're hoping for the Kings jumping into the top 3:

14. Houston

13. Phoenix

12. Utah

11. Golden St.

10. Milwaukee

9. Charlotte

8. Cleveland 

7. Detroit/Washington

6. Utah/Toronto/Washington

5. Cleveland/Toronto/Washington

If they start announcing team names and one of those teams drop down the list it is VERY likely we either stayed where we were or dropped.  If we see Washington at 7 or Washington/Toronto at 6 without anything above changing, it is VERY likely we jumped.

No matter what happens tomorrow, 1st pick or 8th, I will be happy because I have a team to be happy about.

Go Kings!