Nerlens Noel would help jump-start the Cavs’ effort to improve one of the NBA’s worst defenses. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

The NBA’s 2013 draft order was decided by a random readout of lottery numbers on Tuesday, in which fortune favored those teams building on sturdy foundations rather than those looking to start completely anew. While the Magic, Bobcats and Suns could surely have used the freedom and benefit of the No. 1 overall pick in order to jump-start their respective rebuilds, that privilege fell to the Cavaliers — who have now won two of the last three draft lotteries despite some unfavorable odds.

In this particular lottery, Cleveland held just a 15.6-percent chance of scoring the top pick — third in probability to the Magic and Bobcats. That’s an incredible break for a team that already benefited from an even more amazing turn of fortune two years ago; in 2011, the first-round pick the Cavs acquired from the Clippers via trade landed the No. 1 pick (Kyrie Irving) in spite of a measly 2.8-percent chance of doing so. As lucky as that result was in itself, the combination of the two fortuitous bounces of the lottery ping-pong balls is even more unbelievable. By draft probabilities alone, the likelihood that those two specific picks would produce the No. 1 selections in these particular drafts is just 0.4 percent. If I may borrow an exercise of probability from Ian Levy of Hickory High, that’s just slightly more likely than Cleveland’s Alonzo Gee connecting on five consecutive three-pointers last season — a benchmark indicative of incredible improbability if there ever was one.

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Spurs guard Manu Ginobili was called for a flagrant foul after pulling down Grizzlies guard Tony Allen in transition during the final minute of regulation of Game 2 of the Western Conference finals on Tuesday.

The foul helped the Grizzlies force overtime.

Grizzlies forward Quincy Pondexter dunks over Spurs forward Boris Diaw during Game 2 of the Western Conference finals on Tuesday.

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Nick Gilbert (left) won the NBA draft lottery for the second time in three years. (David Dow/Getty Images)

The Cleveland Cavaliers won the rights to the No. 1 pick in the 2013 NBA draft during the league’s annual lottery drawing on Tuesday. The draft is set for June 27 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

Nick Gilbert, son of owner Dan Gilbert, represented the team on stage, as he did in 2011, when the Cavaliers won the right to select Kyrie Irving with the No. 1 overall pick.

“I just had a feeling that we could get hopefully get a top pick, which we did,” Nick Gilbert said. “Whoever we pick can make our final push into the playoffs.”

The Cavaliers finished with a 24-58 record, the third-worst in the league, and leapfrogged over the Magic and Bobcats to earn the No. 1 selection.

“This is huge for us,” Dan Gilbert said. “It’s our third year in a row in the lottery. Hopefully it’s our last for a long, long time. I knew [Nick] is lucky.”

The Magic, who finished a league-worst 20-62, will select No. 2 overall. The Wizards, who finished 29-53, jumped up from the No. 8 spot and will select third in the draft. The Bobcats will select fourth.

The Raptors did not jump up into the top-three of the draft order and will therefore convey their pick to the Thunder — via the Rockets — as part of trades involving Kyle Lowry and James Harden.

Be sure to check out Chris Mannix’s latest SI.com Mock Draft right here. The Point Forward’s Rob Mahoney also laid out the needs of all 14 lottery teams on Tuesday.

The full 2013 first-round draft order is below.

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A side-by-side look at jerseys for the Charlotte Bobcats (left) and Hornets. (Dan Lippitt & Andy Hayt / Getty Images & NBA E)

Charlotte Bobcats owner Michael Jordan announced Tuesday that the franchise has officially submitted paperwork to the NBA to change its name to the “Hornets” for the 2014-15 season.

“Let’s bring the buzz back,” Jordan said at a press conference, noting that “overwhelming” fan support for the switch influenced the organization’s decision.

The franchise also launched BackBuzzCity.com to celebrate the re-branding and manage interest from fans interested in season tickets.

“The Charlotte Hornets name has been a mainstay throughout the region for many years, and we are excited to announce our intention to re-establish this historic brand,” Jordan wrote in a letter to fans. “We believe that its return will galvanize our fan base by unifying our loyal Bobcats fans with those who have strong memories of our city’s NBA predecessor.”

Jordan also said that his organization will begin a “year-long process” to select the team’s colors and design the team’s logo and uniforms.

Multiple reports in the past week indicated plans were underway to bring the “Hornets” nickname back to Charlotte after the original Hornets relocated to New Orleans in 2002. The New Orleans Hornets unveiled a re-branding in January and took on the “Pelicans” moniker immediately following the conclusion of the 2012-13 regular season, freeing up the Hornets nickname.

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