No one's saying (other than Charles Barkley) that the Draft Lottery will be suspect if the Nets win it. But there's no doubt the NBA wouldn't be unhappy if the Nets got off to a good start in Brooklyn with a high lottery pick, perhaps the overall No. 1. That's because, in the words of David Stern's deputy, Brooklyn's success is important to the league.

"With all things being equal, we’d love this team to get off to a good start," Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver told Tim Bontemps at last month’s unveiling of the Nets’ new color scheme and logos. "For financial reasons, [Brooklyn’s] hugely important. In fact, the team is projected to become a revenue sharing payer, instead of a recipient, which makes a big difference."

Silver said Nets' management and ownership is up to the task. "I think management wins in this league. I have confidence in Bruce Ratner and Mikhail Prokhorov and their teams, and Billy King and Avery have a strong track record."

• Nets and league have chance to win at Wednesday's lottery - Tim Bontemps - New York Post