Sean headed for Sacramento

Dennis Rodman. Gilbert Arenas. Manu Ginobili.
The so-called experts questioned all of them when they came into the NBA. All were selected in the second round of the draft.
All, subsequently, became big-time players.
That’s a path former Virginia guard Sean Singletary would love to follow.
The Sacramento Kings took Singletary in the second round (42nd overall) of Thursday night’s draft.
Singletary, who was hoping to be a first-rounder, was the seventh point guard drafted behind Derrick Rose (Chicago), Russell Westbrook (Seattle), Jerryd Bayless (Indiana), George Hill (San Antonio), Mario Chalmers (Miami) and Kyle Weaver (Charlotte).
“Being the competitor that I am, I was a little disappointed,” said Singletary, who became the first Virginia player to be drafted since Roger Mason did so in 2002, “but I wasn’t annoyed. Everyone that got picked deserved to be picked, [but] I’ll definitely have motivation from where I was picked.”
Singletary never worried that he wouldn’t be selected at all — as the majority of mock drafts had predicted.
“I knew I was going to get picked,” he said. “It was just a matter of when. I did well with my workouts and with the Orlando predraft camp. I thought I could go later in the first round, but with the way the point guards were picked early…I knew Charlotte really liked me, but then Augustin went earlier than everyone expected.”
Singletary watched the draft — sporadically — at a friend’s house. He kept turning the television on and off. Finally, over 3 and 1/2 hours after the proceedings began, Singletary received word from his agent that the Kings had selected him. Soon after, he called his mother.
“She was very excited,” Singletary said.
So was Virginia coach Dave Leitao.
“Like I’m sure everyone in the Virginia basketball community is, I’m proud and happy that Sean was able to take one step closer to realizing a lifelong dream of playing in the NBA,” said Leitao in a press release. “It’s a great opportunity for him and it’s an opportunity for him to continue to grow.”
Truth be told, Singletary probably couldn’t have handpicked a better situation for himself. A glance at Sacramento’s point-guard-thin roster tells you that. The Kings’ starter last season, Beno Udrih, is an unrestricted free agent who may not return. Ditto for their backup, NBA journeyman Anthony Johnson.
John Salmons is not a natural point guard, while Kevin Martin, Francisco Garcia and Quincy Douby are more scorers than they are playmakers.
“If you look at what they have on paper at his position, it looks like a situation that he is going to be able to go into and make work for himself and for the team,” Leitao said. “I know that’s all Sean wanted.
“It’s a very good organization with very solid front office people. Reggie Theus is a young, aggressive and very good coach whom I’ve known for a number of years. I’m very happy for everybody involved.”
Another plus for Singletary is that the Kings — who finished six games below .500 last season and failed to qualify for the playoffs — don’t have very much money tied up in their guards.
“No matter where I was drafted, I couldn’t be in a better situation than this,” Singletary agreed. “I was a little disappointed at times [during the draft], but I got over it quick because I know that I’m in a great situation.”
One of the only negatives is the fact that by going in the second round, Singletary’s contract will not be guaranteed. The Philadelphia native will have to earn his way onto the team through his performances in the upcoming summer league and then training camp in October. He will probably also have to duke it out with some other guards who Sacramento will bring in either via free agency or trade.
“I think we still need to do more at our point-guard position than just one draft pick,” Sacramento’s President of Basketball Operations Geoff Petrie said on the team’s website.
ESPN’s Chad Ford, one of the most respected draft analysts in the business, gave Sacramento an overall grade of C- for its selections. However, that was based primarily on the team’s other two picks – Rider center Jason Thompson and Georgetown forward Patrick Ewing, Jr.          Regarding Singletary, Ford wrote: “The Kings needed a point guard and Singletary is a talent. He can score and dish and could be a nice backup point guard. But if Beno Udrih leaves via free agency, Singletary isn’t good enough to take over — he could barely produce wins in the ACC.”
Ouch. The good news for Singletary is that his new boss sounds a tad more optimistic.
“He had a terrific career at Virginia and in the ACC,” Petrie said. “He put up terrific numbers this year. He’s a very solid point guard with defensive ability. He is a mature player as well having played in the ACC all those years.”