It's not that the idea of the NBA favoring certain scenarios is so farfetched, its that the evidence used to prove it is lacking.
I'm not much for leaps of faith, whether its involving the idea that this Celtics squad can make the playoffs or that the NBA fixes things like the lottery. There are 28 or 29 other teams in any given scenario that are more than happy to blow the whistle on each other, as well as the front office, when even the slightest impropriety is suggested or acted upon, why would the draft lottery be any different?
For example, everything above is just the same kind of circumstantial noise that comes out when people try to talk about Sterling -- its no coincidence, IMO, that the same people who are more or less Sterling defenders are also the loudest voices when it comes to the alleged fixing of the NBA.
Here's an easy solution -- stop watching the NBA, and stop posting on NBA message boards.