Want top pick? You can Cav it!

IT’S NOT looking like the draft to end all drafts, after all.

After months of hype when teams were losing like crazy to go for the No. 1 pick, Thursday night’s NBA draft will likely start with the Cleveland Cavaliers trading out of the top spot.

“They won’t stay at 1,” predicted one NBA personnel man on Tuesday, echoing a league-wide sentiment, as the top 15 players began arriving in New York for the draft at Barclays Center.

The Cavs had targeted Kansas 7-foot center Joel Embiid for the top pick until he had two screws inserted in his right foot last Friday to repair a stress fracture. Combined with the stress fracture in Embiid’s back that KO’d him from the NCAA Tournament three months ago, the Cavs have spent the last few days entertaining offers for the No. 1 pick.

Two of the teams actively looking to move up to the No. 1 spot are the Sixers, picking third and 10th, and Utah, with the No. 5 selection. But they have their sights on different players.

The Sixers likely would use the pick on Embiid’s former Kansas teammate, Andrew Wiggins, the 6-8 wingman who is seen by most NBA GMs as having the greatest ceiling of any player in the draft and could develop into a future superstar. They’ve talked internally about parting with the No. 3 pick and veteran guard Thaddeus Young in a deal.

The Jazz wants to trade up via its top pick, plus perhaps a future pick, plus veteran forward Derrick Favors to go for Jabari Parker, the 6-8 Duke forward who is regarded by many GMs as the player most prepared to make an immediate impact. Utah knows it has to move up to No. 1 for Parker because the Bucks, picking at No. 2, have targeted Parker, who is from Chicago and has said that he would like to play close to home.

When one of the Bucks’ new co-owners, Marc Lasry, said the team would not take Embiid if he is available at No. 2 because of the severity of the foot injury, and the fact that he could be out for six months, he also hinted that the team is leaning toward Parker. The Bucks finished with the worst record in the league this past season, winning only 15 games.

“I think for us, we’re going to want someone who is going to help us on day one,” Lasry said. “It’s hard to take Embiid.”