Mavericks turn to the same lottery good-luck charm that landed Cooper Flagg

The NBA Draft Lottery in Chicago, Illinois, is tomorrow, and the Dallas Mavericks have officially decided to send Rolando Blackman and Matt Riccardi back to the Windy City as the team's representatives. Riccardi and Blackman were the exact pairing Dallas used last year at the Draft Lottery when the team landed the No. 1 overall pick (which was later used to draft Cooper Flagg), and they'll be hoping for some of the same luck once again.

Riccardi's good luck charm last year was an owl sticker from his son Lio, and the Mavericks are keeping this good juju alive by sending the same people to the lottery once again.

Why the Mavericks are sending the same lottery duo back to Chicago

Masai Ujiri confirmed that Blackman would be their on-stage representative again during his introductory press conference this week, and it was expected that Riccardi would be in the lottery drawing room again at that point as well. The NBA confirmed this notion on Friday, and the exact lucky duo that brought Dallas its saving grace in a dark time is back for more.

The Mavericks aren't as desperate for lottery luck as they were last year, but landing in the top four would certainly guarantee that Flagg has a future star to play alongside. Darryn Peterson, AJ Dybantsa, Cam Boozer, and Caleb Wilson headline this year's draft class, and any of these players would give Dallas' young core a major boost.

The Mavs have a 28.97 percent chance to land in the top four and a 6.7 percent chance at landing the No. 1 overall pick. These are much better odds than they had last year, as they only had a 1.8 percent chance to land the first pick. Luck was obviously on their side on that May 12 evening, and Ujiri and company are hoping that the ping pong balls fall in their favor again.

"I'm officially appointing (Blackman) to deliver another No. 1 pick," Ujiri said.

Ujiri said he would be in attendance for the lottery as well, alongside "all (his) bosses," and specifically listed Ethan Casson. Dallas is going to have a significant presence in Chicago for the lottery and succeeding NBA Draft Combine, and the next week will be pivotal for the Flagg era.

Why keeping Matt Riccardi matters

While Riccardi didn't land the general manager position he was vying for, it seems likely that the Mavericks will keep him around, given that Ujiri is sending him to the lottery. This is a huge sign of trust that the new president wants him in the drawing room again.

The NBA listed him as the team's assistant general manager when they announced he would be in the drawing room again (despite this being before the Mike Schmitz hire was reported), and him returning to the team's front office would be great news for Mavericks fans.

Ujiri's next dream is moving up in the lottery after landing the No. 9 pick despite having the sixth-best odds last year with the Toronto Raptors, and he hopes that Blackman and Riccardi can bring Dallas another favorable selection.

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