It was close but no cigar on the Victor Wembanyama sweepstakes front for the Portland Trail Blazers during Tuesday night's lottery for the 2023 NBA Draft.

The Blazers entered the event with a 10.5 percent chance to win the No. 1 overall pick in this year's draft. Instead, they will be picking third overall, which means they are essentially out of the running for Victor Wembanyama, who will very likely land with the San Antonio Spurs, who won the right to pick first.

Blazers fans will look back at the lottery with some bitterness, considering how close the team was to actually turning the table on everybody.

Via Ben Golliver of the Washington Post:

“The San Antonio Spurs won the NBA Draft lottery and the right to select Victor Wembanyama with the ping pong ball combo 14, 5, 8, 2. The Portland Trail Blazers held the combination 14, 5, 8, 3. They missed by just one number on the final ball.”

Now, on to some of the reactions from NBA and Blazers fans to Portland barely missing out on the Victor Wembanyama lottery.

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https://twitter.com/guapsanchez/status/1658635047061311490

Had the Blazers ended up winning the No. 1 pick, that would have made a lot of people in Portland happy, to say least, including no other than Damian Lillard, who is still seeking that elusive NBA ring. A tandem of Lillard and Victor Wembanyama tantalized Blazers fans, but that's not going to happen anymore. Nevertheless, that No. 3 pick isn't too shabby either.

The Blazers were bested in the NBA lottery by just the Spurs and the Charlotte Hornets, who will be picking No. 1 and No. 2 respectively.