Clippers take another spin in the lottery

The Clippers are in familiar territory, vacationing during the NBA playoffs and awaiting the results of tonight’s draft lottery at Secaucus, New Jersey.

Coach Mike Dunleavy will represent the Clippers at the NBA Entertainment Studios in Secaucus as the results are revealed before San Antonio and Utah play in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals. The lottery is on ESPN at 5:30 p.m. PDT.

The lottery sets the top three picks in the June 28 draft; the rest of the slots go in order of worst team record.

Among the 14 non-playoff teams, the Clippers had the best record at 40-42, and so have only a 0.5% chance of getting the No. 1 overall pick. Their odds of landing the second or third picks increas only slightly to 0.59% and 0.73%.

The Clippers will select 14th unless they get a top-three pick. They also hold the 45th selection in the second round.

The Memphis Grizzlies (22-60) had the league’s worst record this season and have the highest probability of selecting first at 25%. The Boston Celtics have a 19.9% chance at the top spot.

This year’s draft is considered unusually talent-heavy, with center Greg Oden and forward Kevin Durant the consensus Nos. 1 and 2 players in the draft, league executives said.

This draft is considered key for the Clippers because they lack depth on the wing.

Clippers forward Corey Maggette could terminate the final year of his contract and become a free agent after next season, so the Clippers are expected to draft a perimeter player.

The team did not have a first-round selection in the 2006 draft, and the Clippers’ 2005 lottery pick, Yaroslav Korolev, has not developed as expected. The 20-year-old Russian forward played in 24 games as a rookie and only 10 this season.

The Clippers in October declined to exercise the third-year option in the contract of the former 12th overall pick, making him an unrestricted free agent after the season. The Clippers might offer Korolev a contract for next season, but it seems he’s no longer in their long-term plans.

The Clippers have participated in 16 of the 22 draft lotteries, including eight consecutive from 1998 through 2005. They finished first in the 1988 lottery and selected Danny Manning.

In 1987, the Clippers had the NBA’s worst record but dropped to fourth in the lottery. The San Antonio Spurs finished first and selected center David Robinson. The Clippers chose swingman Reggie Williams.

jason.reid@latimes.com