3 nightmare NBA Draft Lottery scenarios that would hurt Raptors

1. The Raptors move down

This only has a slight chance of happening, with the New Orleans Pelicans likely going to end up locking in with the No. 14 pick. In the grand scheme of things, this might not mean much. The Pelicans picking the exact player that Toronto was going to draft remains unlikely.

However, if the Raptors wanted to move around the draft order, they would have been dealt a swift kick in the teeth by the ping-pong balls. Toronto slipping in the order ever so slightly could throw a big wrench in whatever they had planned with that pick.

The Toronto Raptors might lose ground in the draft order.

If the Raptors want to move off the No. 14 pick, either to trade down or to move up, that pick is a less desirable asset than No. 13 overall. In a draft with 58 picks, half of which are second-round picks that get traded without a care in the world, that one spot could have tons of value baked into it.

Imagine suffering through all of the bad vibes and all of the difficult losing streaks this season for a pick that is one spot above being out of the lottery, all while missing the postseason. Raptors fandom can be a very tribal place, but this fear should unify all factions.