No lottery for the Celtics, will the Lakers lose their pick?

The Celtics made the playoffs so I've been spared from writing countless articles explaining the lottery odds and how little chance we would have of landing one of the top 3 picks in the draft.  In fact, there's no drama at all.  The Celtics know where they are picking (barring trades of course). Instead, we can relax and watch Lakers fans sweat.

Nothing to chance: Celtics simply lottery observers - Boston Celtics Blog - ESPN

From the schadenfreude department, Boston's cross-country rival, the Los Angeles Lakers, stand to lose their first-round pick if it lands outside the top 5. The Lakers finished with the fourth worst record in basketball and have quality odds at a top pick (11.9 percent chance at No. 1; 37.8 percent at top 3). Two teams from behind the Lakers would have to vault to a top spot in order to push the Lakers into a position where they'd send their first-round pick to Philadelphia.

I'm not sure if seeing the 76ers get that pick is any better, but I think it is worth seeing the looks on the Lakers executives.

Also, how the lottery shakes out may impact which teams are willing to trade with the Celtics, so there's a chance that we could start seeing more rumors after the draft order is finally set.  Stay tuned.