The one major factor that could help the San Antonio Spurs' lottery odds

With six weeks left in the NBA season, the race to the bottom is on for teams coveting the talented prospects in the upcoming draft, headlined by Duke Blue Devil Cooper Flagg. San Antonio will potentially have two lottery picks due to the unprotected first-rounders they acquired from the Atlanta Hawks in the Dejounte Murray trade, and they're coming at the perfect time.

After the Spurs' promising start, the season's collapse has yanked their postseason goals away. It's through no fault of their own that injury and illness plagued this year's escapade, but the light at the end of the tunnel comes with the right selections.

Thankfully for the NBA's lottery system, the SAS don't need to finish with the worst record to get the best pick, but they still need to improve their odds. However, this isn't a talentless ballclub, so they'll need some help. The rest of the NBA schedule will provide it.

Spurs' schedule is tougher than most projected lottery teams

The Silver and Black have the ninth-worst record in the NBA right now, but there's a good chance they'll fall further before the season is over. They currently have the 12th-ranked strength-of-schedule for the 23 games remaining, per Tankathon.

The teams with a worse record than the Spurs are the Wizards, Hornets, Jazz, Pelicans, Raptors, Nets, 76ers, and Bulls. The teams are listed in order, with Washington holding onto the very bottom of the league's totempole. San Antonio (25-34) won't catch them, but falling below Chicago (24-37), Brooklyn (21-39), and/or Philly (21-39) is possible.

Chi-Town is 17th in SOS, while Brooklyn sits at 19th, and Philly is 25th. That makes it easy to see them winning a few more games to end the year, compromising their draft position. The Nets are getting healthier right now, so the reinforcements will make their team better in the short term.

These teams are all sort of a mess, so I won't act like there isn't an equally good chance that they won't maintain their place. They're bad teams with bad records for a reason. But circumstance is often a major factor in success on a nightly basis in the NBA, and these teams either have talented stars like Tyrese Maxey on the Sixers, are getting healthy like Brooklyn, or exist like Chicago.

Yeah, I don't have much optimism for the Bulls, except to say that their roster should be better than 24 wins, but it hasn't worked out. Lonzo Ball is missing games again. This time, it's just for a sprained wrist, but they need all the help they can get each night.

Remember, the higher the Spurs' lottery odds, the better the chance at a higher pick, and a higher pick gives San Antonio options. Whether they decide to make a selection, move up, or trade out, the value will be that much higher in a stacked draft. So, keep an eye out for the motion from these other teams for the rest of the year.