Not being lucky has worked out just fine for the Kings in recent years – at least when it comes to the NBA draft lottery.

The disappointment in 2009 when the Kings had the league's worst record but ended up with the worst possible pick – No. 4 – was soothed when they turned the choice into 2010 Rookie of the Year Tyreke Evans.

Last year, the Kings picked fifth and landed DeMarcus Cousins, a player they will build around.

The Kings would love to land a top-three pick in today's lottery, but if that doesn't happen, it just means a little more work for the front office.

"If you're picking one, you're probably looking at a very few players," coach Paul Westphal said. "If you're picking eight, you're probably looking at 20 to 25 players. There's a lot of different scenarios the deeper you pick."

After tiebreakers, the Kings had the fifth-worst record, giving them a 7.6 percent chance of landing the first pick. The lowest the Kings will select is No. 8, since the lottery determines only the first three choices; the rest of the lottery teams will draft in order based on their records.

Until the Kings know their spot in the first round, talk of whom they will pick is merely speculation but fun for mock drafts. Regardless, Westphal feels prepared for what might happen.

"We've done a lot of preliminary work," Westphal said. "But once we know where we're going to pick and are able to bring players in and get to know them as people, there aren't any conclusions we can make."

NBA director of scouting Ryan Blake said this year's draft has plenty of point guards because of the influx of early entrants. Duke freshman Kyrie Irving leads the point guard group, which includes Kentucky's Brandon Knight and Connecticut's Kemba Walker.

The Kings would have to land the first or second pick for a chance at Irving, but Knight and Walker might be available if the Kings don't get into the top three.

In recent years, the Kings have been looking to add a point guard, and basketball president Geoff Petrie said last month that adding another "creator" could be a long-term solution.

But taking a point guard isn't necessarily the way the Kings will go. After winning just 24 games last season, they could elect to take the best player available.

Arizona forward Derrick Williams and Kentucky center Enes Kanter would be expected to contribute as rookies.

Blake said if the Kings pick as low as No. 8, there should be a player who could help.

"There's going to be a lot of (quality) players available," Blake said. "We don't know where Kanter's going to go. We have the Morris brothers (Marcus and Markieff from Kansas), who I think have a real good chance of becoming better."

The Kings have two picks in the second round, the 35th overall and the draft's final choice, the 60th, which came from Milwaukee via Chicago in last year's trade of Jon Brockman to Milwaukee for Darnell Jackson.

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