Once again, the Kings have another lottery pick. And this past week, they were at the NBA Draft Combine in Chicago to evaluate players.
One player that is projected to a mid-first round pick is Michigan State guard Denzel Valentine.
While speaking with the media on Friday, the AP Player of the Year and Big 10 Player of the Year mentioned that he met with the Kings.
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SIGN UP HERE And it wasn't just any ordinary meeting for Valentine. He got to meet a former player he used to enjoy watching growing up.
When asked if he gets a sense of how teams view him and if they have any concerns, Valentine offered this:
"Oh yeah, I got their feedback, just kind of talked to them. I'm excited. You only get to do this once. Just hearing the feedback and meeting with teams," Valentine said. "I saw Peja Stojakovic, that was one of my favorite players growing up, and Vlade Divac. I watched those guys growing up, so it was good to meet them and talk to them a little bit."
Later in the media session, a reporter asked the Lansing, Michigan native how he became a fan of Stojakovic.
NBA
"When I was playing video games when I was young, playing with the Kings. They were the team battling Kobe and Shaq, so I used to watch those guys," Valentine said. "I used to want to have them win rather than Kobe. [Peja] was one of the best players on the team, so I just always liked his game.
"I met with the Kings this and [Peja] was there and we talked."
For the moment, the Kings hold the No. 8 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft, which will be held on Jun 23. But the positioning could change during the NBA Draft Lottery to be conducted on May 17.
Valentine is ranked No. 13 on the ESPN's Big Board, while NBA.com has him ranked No. 16.
During his senior season at Michigan State, Valentine averaged 19.2 points, 7.8 assists and 7.5 rebounds per game.