Tonight’s draft lottery promises to be a suspenseful affair. The biggest prize is Ohio State’s Greg Oden, who some have labeled as the best prospect at the center position since Tim Duncan. It’s possible (however unlikely) that the winner of the lottery would instead select Texas’ Kevin Durant, a polished, NBA-ready scoring forward (and college Player of the Year). Scouts agree that both players will become franchise players. Here are the odds of each of the lottery teams landing one of the top two picks:

1. Memphis (46.5%)
2. Boston (38.7%)
3. Milwaukee (31.3%)
4. Phoenix¹ (24.5%, pick goes back to Atlanta)
5. Seattle (18.5%)
6. Portland (11.3%)
7. Minnesota (11.3%)
8. Charlotte (4.1%)
9. Chicago² (4.1%, Chicago retains pick)
10. Sacramento (3.9%)
11. Atlanta³ (1.8%, pick goes back to Indiana)
12. Philadelphia (1.5%)
13. New Orleans (1.3%)
14. LA Clippers (1.1%)

¹Suns receive Hawks’ first round pick, top 3 protected (Joe Johnson trade)
² Bulls have the right to swap first round picks with the Knicks (Eddy Curry trade)
³ Hawks receive Pacers’ first round pick, top 10 protected (Al Harrington trade)

The onus is definitely on landing one of those first two picks, but this draft is so loaded with talent that teams that end up with picks #3-#6 will get a player (Brandan Wright, Yi Jianlian, Al Horford or Corey Brewer) that is a better prospect than the top few picks (Andrea Bargnani, LaMarcus Aldridge, Adam Morrison, Tyrus Thomas) in last year’s draft.

For example, I’d love to see my beloved Bucks land Oden or Durant, but a consolation prize of Horford or Brewer wouldn’t be bad.

For some unintentional humor, keep an eye on the Knicks’ representative (if the NBA requires one to be there). The Bulls get the Knicks’ first round pick, so if New York somehow lands a pick in the top three, they won’t be at all happy about it. The Hawks are also in a strange position. They are rooting for their #4 pick to win the lottery (so they get it back from Phoenix) while also rooting for their #11 pick (from Indiana) to stay out of the top three, so it doesn’t return to the Pacers.