Houston posted the NBA’s worst record in the 1982-83 season and the second-worst, three games ahead of the Indiana Pacers, in the 1983-84 season, and earned the number one pick in the draft each time. Those were the last two drafts when the number one pick was determined by a coin flip between the worst team in each conference; the lottery was instituted in 1985 in response to rumors of the Rockets throwing games late in both season in order to secure a higher draft pick.

via 1981 NBA Finals – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.