1,001 ping pong balls, 30 minutes, 14 teams and one deputy commissioner of the NBA later, the Pistons own the ninth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.
Coming into Wednesday's lottery, the Pistons had a meager 1.7 percent chance of winning the first overall selection — a pick that will presumably be used on Kentucky freshman and Naismith Award-winner Anthony Davis — but that honor instead belongs to the New Orleans Hornets.
The Hornets will select first overall just eight months after losing star point guard, and franchise cornerstone, Chris Paul.
The seven-win Charlotte Bobcats, who had the best shot at the first overall selection (a 25 percent chance), will pick second, followed by the Washington Wizards.
The Cleveland Cavaliers will pick fourth, and the Sacramento Kings round out the top five.
The rest of the lottery went as expected — no team after the Cavaliers (who fell from third to fourth) moved up or down from their predicted slot.
The NBA Draft will take place on June 28.
