Doc's diagnosis: Sixers did well

NEW YORK - If the 76ers came out of last night's NBA draft lottery with only the No. 3 pick, Julius Erving said he and the group in attendance representing the team may have been a little disappointed.

But the fact that Philadelphia also secured the 10th selection, via last June's draft-night trade of Jrue Holiday to the New Orleans Pelicans, had Doctor J in good spirits.

Erving represented the 76ers' organization on stage at last night's lottery, which the Cleveland Cavaliers won for the second consecutive year, defying the odds once again. It's just the second time in the last 20 years the Sixers have had the No. 3 overall pick; their selection of Jerry Stackhouse in 1995 marked the first.

"To have 3 and 10, we might have done better than anybody else," Erving said after the televised lottery show had ended. "We can get two players out of this draft or leverage those two picks. I think we definitely did better than the Lakers [No. 7]. We did better than the Celtics [No. 6], and probably we did better than the Bucks [No. 2] because we had two picks and they had one. So those three teams I said we had to beat in this next cycle [of league supremacy], we're ahead of them already."

If Erving were making the picks, the Sixers would come out of the top 10 with a power forward and a guard. Kansas' Andrew Wiggins and Joel Embiid and Duke's Jabari Parker are considered the top three players in this year's draft, which will be held June 26 at Brooklyn's Barclays Center.

"We could get a power forward and a guard," Erving said. "I don't think we need a center. I think Noel's going to be just fine."

Erving also praised rookie of the year Michael Carter-Williams.

"He's awesome," Erving said. "The next step is just to be more consistent night in and night out and play with a winner. So we've got to get a winner around him."

Added Erving: "We've got a lot to work with."

After the Orlando Magic, which had the third-best odds at No. 1 behind the Sixers (19.9 percent chance at No. 1) and the Bucks (25 percent) were announced as owning the No. 4 pick, Erving stood between Cleveland general manager David Griffin and Mallory Edens, daughter of Bucks co-owner Wes Edens, to await the revealing of the top 3. The Cavaliers won despite having merely a 1.7 percent chance at No. 1.

"That was a great feeling that we were in the top 3. And then when they called our name first it was a disappointment," Erving said. "So it was a roller-coaster ride. But having 10 as a backup made three a lot more palatable. We're 3-10. Hey, I bet everybody up there except Cleveland would probably trade for that right now."