NBA Draft Lottery

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Sacramento awaits its positioning along with 13 other teams as the NBA Draft Lottery takes place on Tuesday evening in New York. Each team in attendance brings with it a hope for good fortune, as each will be represented by a person of their respective organization’s choosing.

For Sactown, head coach Dave Joerger will be representing the squad. In 2016’s NBA Draft Lottery, the Kings maintained their slotted No. 8 pick, trading and acquiring additional picks that would turn into Georgios Papagiannis, Malachi Richardson and Skal Labissiere. This season, the team is in place to select the No. 8 and No. 10 overall in June’s draft with an 8.2% chance at a top three selection.

In Sacramento's lottery history, the team has moved up just once, winning the number one pick in 1989.

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Joerger to Represent Kings at Draft Lottery

Kyle Ramos

After the ping pong balls had settled in New York for the NBA Draft Lottery, the Kings were awarded the No. 8 overall pick in the upcoming 2016 NBA Draft.

Upon hearing the news, former Kings guard Doug Christie, who was selected with the 17th overall pick during the 1992 NBA Draft, took to Twitter to weigh in on Sacramento’s selection slot.

“When I say infinite, I’m just hoping for the best talent,” said Christie to Kings.com following the Lottery. “When you’re drafting, in my opinion, at [the 8th overall spot], you’ve got to take the best [player available] – that infinite talent, whoever that might be.”

Doug is quite the admirer of the infinity symbol himself, sporting a tattoo of it on his left wrist. No. 13 would often put his ink on display during his signature celebration on the court.

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Christie Shares ‘Infinite’ Draft Hopes

Shahbaz Khan

Represented by last year’s Lottery selection in Willie Cauley-Stein, the team’s draft positioning was set in New York on Tuesday evening.

With a 72.4 percent chance at the eighth selection, the Kings maintained their positioning in the 2016 NBA Draft. Tuesday’s reveal marks the 10th time Sacramento has remained at its pre-Lottery position in the NBA Draft. Additionally, Sactown has selected from the eighth position twice in the Sacramento era, with the most recent coming in 2014.

1: Philadelphia 76ers
2: Los Angeles Lakers
3: Boston Celtics
4: Phoenix Suns
5: Minnesota Timberwolves
6: New Orleans Pelicans
7: Denver Nuggets8: Sacramento Kings
9: Toronto Raptors
10: Milwaukee Bucks
11: Orlando Magic
12: Utah Jazz
13: Phoenix Suns
14: Chicago Bulls

The NBA Draft will take place on June 23 at Barclays Center in Brooklyn.

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Kings Land No. 8 Pick In NBA Draft

The Kings hold a 6.8 percent chance of moving into the top three in Tuesday’s NBA Draft Lottery, which will be broadcast live beginning at 5 p.m. PDT on ESPN.

Since arriving in Sacramento in 1985, the Kings have selected in the top three on only two occasions, picking Pervis Ellison No. 1 overall in 1989, and in 1991, choosing Syracuse small forward Billy Owens third overall.

Along with capturing the top pick in 1989, it still remains the only summer in which the team moved up in the Draft Lottery. In all, Sacramento has maintained its Draft position nine times, while it has dropped one spot five times and two spots three times. Additionally, the Kings have twice fallen the maximum three spots.

The place in which the Kings have traditionally landed – a total of six times – is the No. 7 pick, including three years ago, when the team selected Kansas shooting guard Ben McLemore.

The Kings have only picked at two other spots more than once – twice choosing fifth and three times at sixth.

Last year, the Kings stayed at the No. 6 pick and chose Kentucky forward Willie Cauley-Stein, who will represent the team at this year's lottery.

In 2016, the Kings have a 72.4 percent chance of remaining in the eighth spot, the highest probability for picks one through 11, with the No. 11 pick coming in at a 0.001 percent chance.

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Kings Draft Lottery History

Sacramento awaits its positioning along with 13 other teams as the NBA Draft Lottery takes place on Tuesday evening in Brooklyn, New York. Each team in attendance brings with it a hope for good fortune, as each will be represented by a person of their respective organization’s choosing.

For Sactown, Willie Cauley-Stein will be representing the squad in Brooklyn. In 2015’s NBA Draft Lottery, the Kings maintained their slotted No. 6 pick, eventually selecting Cauley-Stein. This season, the team is in place to select the No. 8 overall pick in June’s draft with a 6.8% chance at a top three selection.

trill-to-represent-kings-at-draft-lottery

Trill to Represent Kings at Draft Lottery

Alex Kramers

Moments after entering a packed, private reception area on the third floor of the New York Hilton Midtown – as gaggles of tourists, buskers and sidewalk vendors lined the neighboring Times Square streets – former Sacramento center Vlade Divac became the center of attention.

The hard-to-miss Kings VP of Basketball and Franchise Operations – draped in a sharp, dark suit, whitedress shirt and black-and-blue striped tie, accessorized with a kindhearted smile and unmistakable, thinly-trimmed beard – shook hands and shared laughs with fellow League executives, former on-court foes and dozens of fans from across the globe.

As he zigzagged around circular tables decorated with white linens and candles, the 47-year-old reminisced with former teammate and current L.A. Lakers Head Coach Byron Scott, embraced Miami Heat VP of Player Programs Alonzo Mourning and jubilantly imitated Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo’s patented finger-wag.

“It’s nice to be back in the NBA family and obviously (I have) a lot of good memories with those guys,” said Divac, surrounded by temporary wallpaper interspersed with NBA Lottery emblems. “In ’89, I was on the other side – with the players – but now I’m on the executive side, so it’s a great feeling.”

90 minutes before the Kings representative would sit at Sacramento’s designated podium, Divac – in between posing for photos and signing autographs – reflected on rejoining the franchise with which he posted the six most productive seasons of his distinguished, 16-year NBA playing career.

“Obviously, I had a great career over there, and then when they called me up to help, I felt (in) some way (it was) my duty to come back and do my part of the job,” said Divac, whose No. 21 jersey was hoisted to the Sleep Train Arena rafters on March 31, 2009. “I think it’s a great story how Sacramento survived and kept the team. I love it, and I’m enjoying (being in) the front office.”

Familiar with the significance of trust and teamwork at all levels – as the maestro of the selfless passing and togetherness that defined his title-contending Kings teams – the former All-Star intends to work closely and share a singular goal with his executive partners.

“I think (chemistry) is more important in the front office because that reflects on the court,” he said. “The most important thing is what kind of people you have around you. Right now, we really have a good (front office) team, so we’re going to work together and hopefully we can help the (basketball) team be successful.”

Rather than cram a good luck charm into his suitcase to help defy the odds in Tuesday’s drawing, the FIBA Hall of Famer opted to trust the poise and optimism he embodied on the court to ensure he’d triumph – no matter which way the critical ping-pong balls would bounce.

“I just think positive and positive things usually happen,” he said. “We are all in the same bracket – being in the Lottery – and it’s a gamble. You don’t know which (charm) is going to work.”

Prior to learning the Kings Lottery fate, Divac – who credits his previous tenures as Serbian Olympic Committee President and Lakers overseas scout for helping prepare him for his new position – shared the team’s collective brain trust would likely target a player who’d make an immediate contribution while complementing All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins.

“(Our foundation) starts with (Cousins), of course,” said Divac. “He’s so talented with his hands and feet – he has great footwork – and plus on top of that, he’s physically a beast.”

Upon watching countless hours of film to evaluate collegiate and international prospects and scouting in-person at the annual NBA Draft Combine in Chicago, Divac has identified remarkable depth in this year’s class and a slew of elite players scattered across the first round.

“This year, it’s very deep – I like pretty much all (prospects) in the top 10,” he said. “We have already a list of who is a (potential) King. Whoever is available (from) our scouting reports, we’ll take him.”

After perusing the pasta- and dessert-laden buffet tables and settling on breadsticks, Divac resumed mingling with dozens of high-ranking NBA staffers and accompanying guests, each of whom avidly endorsed No. 21’s comprehensive understanding and lasting impact on the sport.

“He was a very good player, obviously, and he had a great career – especially in Sacramento. They played the game the way it was supposed to be played (by) moving the ball,” said NBA icon and Indiana Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird. “I’m glad he’s back in the League. I think he’s good for it – he knows basketball, he knows players, and … hopefully he’ll get (the Kings) turned around.”

After facing the versatile center – who remains one of only seven players in NBA history to amass over 13,000 points, 9,000 rebounds, 3,000 assists and 1,500 blocks – for over a decade on the hardwood, Mourning placed Divac in the upper-echelon of all-time, slick-passing big men.

“He was a very smart, very crafty player (with) great ball-handling skills,” said the Hall of Famer. “But more importantly, his skill level was very high for a guy his size. He wasn’t a predictable player – he was able to fill up the stat sheet in a lot of different ways.”

In addition to praising his innovative playing style and fierce competitiveness, the Serbia native’s peers have long admired his selflessness and internationally-recognized humanitarianism.

“Divac is a good friend – he sat on the international board for the Special Olympics with me and he got to (travel) around the globe with me with NBA (Cares),” said Mutombo. “There’s so much camaraderie between us. I just love the guy so much – what he has done for the NBA, what he has done for the game of basketball around the world and what he’s doing for his wonderful country.”

“Vlade is one of the most giving guys I’ve ever been around,” said Scott. “As a teammate, he was fantastic – he was always one of those guys who was all about the team first and never thought about individual accolades. You couldn’t put a better person in charge of moving up in the ranks as (the Kings) did with him.”

A half-hour before the 8:30 p.m. EDT on-camera proceedings, Divac was escorted backstage by an ESPN official for makeup application and final preparations for the live TV segment inside the adjacent Grand Ballroom, where throngs of NBA officials, camera crews and top prospects assembled across the set.

With spotlights illuminating the Lottery dais and large projection screens broadcasting the telecast throughout the hotel ballroom, Divac stoically nodded as the Kings secured the No. 6 selection in the 2015 Draft, marking only the second time Sacramento did not drop from its pre-drawing position in its last seven Lottery appearances.

Upon unfolding his 7-foot-1 frame from his on-stage seat, No. 21 reiterated his prior enthusiasm, expressing utmost confidence that Sacramento stands to net a prominent and impactful first-year standout.

“It’s good that we stayed in the same place – if we couldn’t move up, then it’s perfect, so I’m happy,” said Divac. “I think it’s a very talented group of guys coming this year, so I think there will be a lot of good guys available.”

In the Lottery era, numerous outstanding players have been selected with the sixth overall pick – including Rookie of the Year winners Damian Lillard and Brandon Roy, as well as All-Stars Antoine Walker and Tom Gugliotta – while Sacramento’s most recent No. 6 selection was 1987-88 All-Rookie First Team member and two-time NBA champion Kenny Smith.

En route to departing the 47-floor Manhattan building to begin planning pre-Draft workouts, the upbeat executive emphasized that with the addition of another promising player to Sacramento’s core of rapidly-developing, young standouts, he doesn’t plan on returning to the annual mid-May event.

“We’re really excited – this is an opportunity for us to do something big,” said Divac. “I hope we won’t be in the Lottery anymore.”

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'An Opportunity for us to do Something Big'

nbaplatformservices

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Vivek on No. 6 Pick

In a ceremony held at the Hilton in midtown New York City, Kings VP of Basketball and Franchise Operations Vlade Divac represented Sacramento as the team landed the No. 6 pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.

It marks the third time in the Sacramento era that the Kings have held the No. 6 selection. In 1987, the team selected UNC guard Kenny Smith and in 1985, Arkansas center Joe Kleine.

The final Draft Lottery order as revealed Tuesday night on ESPN is as follows:

1: Minnesota Timberwolves
2: Los Angeles Lakers
3: Philadelphia 76ers
4: New York Knicks
5: Orlando Magic6: Sacramento Kings
7: Denver Nuggets
8: Detroit Pistons
9: Charlotte Hornets
10: Miami Heat
11: Indiana Pacers
12: Utah Jazz
13: Phoenix Suns
14: Oklahoma City Thunder