Sacramento Kings selected Duke Blue Devils power forward Marvin Bagley III with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft on Thursday night.
The 19-year-old has been considered one of the most NBA-ready prospects in this year’s draft class and joins a young roster in Sacramento.
Bagley becomes the Kings' first top-3 pick since 1991 and is the sixth prospect in 10 years selected by the team in the top-6.
During Bagley’s freshman campaign at Duke, he averaged 21.1 ppg (61 FG%), 11.1 rebs and 1.5 asts in 33 games, leading Duke to an 29-8 record and Elite 8 berth in the NCAA Tournament. His dominance earned him ACC Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year playing under legendary head coach Mike Krzyzewski -- setting Duke Freshman records for points, rebounds, double-doubles and 30-point games.
He visited the Kings during pre-draft workouts and while in Sacramento he discussed the workout, but also how he feels about the city.
“I love it here,” he said with a smile on being in Sacramento. “Just being around all of the people that I’ve seen and met so far just walking around the city, it’s a cool environment to be in.”
“Obviously you play the game to be the best, but wherever you fit in I think that’s the best thing to look for. That’s what I’m kind of looking for as somewhere I can fit in and help my teammates get better and they can help me get better,” he said. “And just being in an environment where I can get better every single day.”
Here are 3 things to know about Bagley:
1. Bagley Chooses Puma
Bagley reportedly signed a five-year shoe deal with Puma, which is an unconventional choice from the usual Nike or Adidas. The company announced that hip-hop legend and mogul Jay-Z would be president of its basketball division.
Bagley's deal is rumored to be the largest shoe deal since Kevin Durant’s 2014 Nike deal.
2. Best College Performances
- Texas (11/24/17) – 43 pts, 15 rebs, 12-19 FG and 9-13 FT
- #7 Florida (11/26/17) – 30 pts, 15 rebs, 10-20 FG and 9-10 FT
- #24 Florida State (12/30/17) – 32 pts, 21 rebs, 13-17 FG
- #2 Virginia (1/27/18) – 30 pts, 14 rebs, 13-18 FG
- Notre Dame (3/8/18) – 33 pts, 17 rebs, 15-23 FG
3. NBA Pedigree
Bagley has got NBA pedigree running through his veins being the grandson of Jumpin’ Joe Caldwell. Caldwell played five seasons in the ABA and six in the NBA. Not only is he one of the few players who was selected as an All-Star in both leagues, but he’s also a member of the U.S. basketball team that won gold in the 1964 Olympics.
“He just tells me to keep working, that’s pretty much what he tells me every time I see him,” said Bagley, talking about his grandfather’s advice. “Never get satisfied, never get complacent with what I’m doing and just keep pushing. It’s not going to be easy, if it was easy you’ll see a lot of people doing it, but you got to keep pushing and keep getting better. That’s one thing that he preaches to me when I was younger and I try to do that.”
Bagley will be looked upon to add much needed scoring, rebounding and depth to a Kings frontcourt, who’s been searching for an identity since trading away All-Star center DeMarcus Cousins.
He will also join a couple of young talented guards in De’Aaron Fox and Bogdan Bogdanovic -- Fox was selected 5th overall in last year’s draft.
Being at the bottom of the league is never fun, but after over a decade of gloom the organization seems to have a slimmer of hope moving in the right direction.