CLEVELAND — Editor's note: the video in the player above is from the Thursday, May 12, 2022 episode of The Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show.
While the Cleveland Cavaliers will take part in the 2022 NBA Draft Lottery on Tuesday, their chances of actually climbing in the draft order are slim. That, however, hasn't stopped the team from celebrating the occasion, with the Cavs announcing that they will be represented on stage by former center Anderson Varejao at the event in Chicago.
While he was originally selected by the Orlando Magic with the No. 30 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft, Varejao was traded to Cleveland before his NBA career officially began. During his first 12 seasons with the Cavs, the Brazil native averaged 7.6 points and 7.5 rebounds in 591 regular-season games and was considered a fan favorite thanks to his hard, defensive-minded play and ability to get under opponents' skin.
Nicknamed "Wild Thing" as a nod to both his curly hair and playing style, Varejao was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers in 2016 and went on to spend parts of two seasons as a member of the Golden State Warriors, facing off against the Cavs in the 2016 NBA Finals. After spending two seasons playing professionally in Brazil, Varejao returned to Cleveland to play in five games with the Cavs during the end of the 2020-21 NBA season before retiring as a member of the franchise.
While Cleveland has entered each of the previous four draft lotteries with hopes of climbing in the draft -- and even did so last year before selecting big man Evan Mobley out of USC with the No. 3 overall pick -- the Cavs' chances of doing so on Tuesday are minimal.
After finishing the season with the eighth-best record (44-38) in the Eastern Conference before losing to the Brooklyn Nets and Atlanta Hawks in the Play-In Tournament, Cleveland enters the Draft Lottery in the No. 14 position. That means the Cavs have just a 2.41 percent chance of securing a top-four pick and just a 0.5 percent chance of landing the No. 1 overall pick -- the lowest odds in the entire Draft Lottery.
The 2022 NBA Draft Lottery will take place at 8 p.m. ET and air live on ESPN.