Sean Singletary's confidence in his worthiness as an NBA Draft pick was reciprocated Thursday night by the Sacramento Kings.
Deron Washington and Sean Singletary will be in camps.

Sean Singletary's confidence in his worthiness as an NBA Draft pick was reciprocated Thursday night by the Sacramento Kings.

Singletary, the most decorated point guard to come out of the Virginia men's basketball program, was selected by the Kings in the second round of the draft, with the 42nd pick overall.

The Detroit Pistons took Virginia Tech forward Deron Washington with the penultimate pick in the draft, the 59th overall. Washington became the first Hokie to be drafted since Eddie Lucas was picked in the second round by Utah in 1999.

Singletary, named first-team All-ACC in three consecutive seasons, was the first Virginia player to be drafted since Roger Mason was chosen by Chicago with the 30th pick in 2002.

Singletary was the first player in ACC history to have 2,000 points, 500 assists, 400 rebounds and 200 steals in his career.

Singletary had placed his name in consideration for the NBA Draft following his junior season in 2007 but removed his name from consideration in the final hours before the deadline.

He said at the time that he felt sure he would have been drafted and reiterated those sentiments this week, although several mock drafts did not include him and ESPN.com had him projected as going 53rd.

The Kings, who finished 38-44 under first-year coach Reggie Theus, used their No. 12 pick in the first round to select Rider University post man Jason Thompson.

The Kings' principal point guard this past season was Beno Udrih, a 25-year-old Slovenian who becomes a free agent Tuesday. Udrih averaged 12.8 points and 4.3 assists.

Washington had been considered a potential second-round pick in large part because of his athletic ability and defensive prowess. He made the All-ACC defensive team this year, when he averaged 13.1 points and 6.5 rebounds.

Detroit was one of the teams Washington visited for a workout.

Washington was the fourth and final ACC player picked, after North Carolina State's J.J. Hickson, Singletary and Maryland's James Gist.
 

2 from state go late
Singletary taken by Kings at No.42; Washington is 59th
Friday, Jun 27, 2008 - 12:07 AM Updated: 12:31 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

At long last, schools from this state had reason to celebrate again during an NBA draft.

Sean Singletary, who was a four-year starter for the University of Virginia, was the Sacramento Kings' choice with the 12th pick of the second round last night, the 42nd overall. Singletary, a 6-0 point guard from Philadelphia, was the second player from the ACC chosen in the two-round draft.

"I think he can play in the NBA, and I think he's been undervalued," draft analyst Jay Bilas said on ESPN. "I think he's a really good pick in the second round."

In June 2002, the Chicago Bulls selected U.Va. guard Roger Mason Jr. with the second pick of the second round. Until last night, Mason, a key reserve for the Washington Wizards this past season, held the distinction of being the last player from a school in Virginia drafted by an NBA team.

Virginia Tech forward Deron Washington was the second-to-last pick last night, going to the Detroit Pistons with the 59th selection overall. Washington, renowned for his athleticism, is the first Hokie taken in the NBA draft since swingman Eddie Lucas, who went to the Utah Jazz with the 58th -- and final -- pick in 1999.

Singletary, whose No.44 jersey was retired in March before his final regular-season game at John Paul Jones Arena, is the only player in ACC history to total 2,000 points, 500 assists, 400 rebounds and 200 steals in his career. He's one of only 25 players in league history to make the all-ACC first team three times, a group that includes Tim Duncan, Ralph Sampson, Phil Ford, David Thompson and Billy Cunningham.

The Kings were among the many NBA teams that worked out Singletary, but he wasn't listed on many mock drafts. At 6-0, he's shorter than many NBA point guards, but his lack of size didn't keep him from rising to rare heights at U.Va., where he played for Pete Gillen as a freshman and for Dave Leitao the past three seasons.

Among the first-round picks last night were two forwards who played on the postgraduate team at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham: West Virginia's Joe Alexander and Florida's Marreese Speights.

Among the standouts not selected last night were Prince George High graduate Reggie Williams, who as a Virginia Military Institute swingman led Division I in scoring the past two seasons; and former U.Va. starter Gary Forbes, the Atlantic 10 player of the year as a Massachusetts senior in 2007-08.

 

King for a day: Singletary drafted by Sacramento
By Whitey Reid
Published: June 27, 2008

George Hill from IUPUI. J.R. Giddens from New Mexico. Kyle Weaver from Washington State.
The names were coming off the board fast and furious – and none of them were a three-time All-ACC First-teamer.
Finally, over three hours into the draft, Virginia’s Sean Singletary heard his name called.
The Sacramento Kings picked the Philadelphia native in the second round with the 42nd overall pick.
Singletary, who was hoping to be drafted in the first round, was selected right where many of the experts expected him to go.
Singletary is headed to a pretty good situation. Sacramento isn’t very deep at point guard. The Kings starter, Beno Udrih, is an unrestricted free agent. The team’s only other guards are veterans John Salmons and Francisco Garcia, as well as second-year man Quincy Douby.
Sacramento spent its first-round pick on Jason Thompson, a 6-foot-11 center from Rider. After Singletary, the Kings took Patrick Ewing, Jr. from Georgetown
Singletary is the first Virginia player selected in the NBA Draft since Roger Mason, Jr. was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 2002.

 

Cavs add defensive end Renfrow to class
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 27, 2008

With numerous eye-popping offers coming almost daily, Justin Renfrow elected to follow in the footsteps of Sean Singletary.
Well, sort of.
Renfrow, a 6-foot-5, 260-pound defensive end from William Penn Charter in Philadelphia committed today, becoming the 17th player to orally join the Class of 2009.
Singletary, who also attended William Penn Charter, played football in high school as a wideout before enjoying a highlight-filled basketball career at Virginia.
Renfrow, a three-star recruit, boasted offers from Stanford, West Virginia, North Carolina, Connecticut, Duke and Temple, and discussed playing tight end with coaches from Miami and Louisville. As a junior last season, the two-way standout had 56 tackles and eight sacks.
“Virginia had been my No. 1 school since my freshman year,” Renfrow said.
At that point, Renfrow had visions of tossing down two-handed dunks in John Paul Jones Arena.
“Virginia was the place that I wanted to go for basketball,” he added. “I would say at the end of my sophomore year that changed when I did the national underclassmen combine and that was my first combine ever.
“I made it in the top 100 and that is when I realized it would be football.”
Renfrow said he landed his scholarship offer last Thursday from Virginia after attending the Cavaliers’ camp. During many of the sessions he worked closely with Virginia defensive line coach Levern Belin and recruiting coordinator Bob Price, both of which drew high praise from the youngster.
Despite being rated as the nation’s 14th-best tight end, Renfrow said he was excited to play defensive end at Virginia.
“I know as a tight end that I am real athletic and it comes to me pretty easily,” he said, “but defensive end is where I will be at and I can’t wait to get started.”

 

Cavs' new voice stood out in pool of 200 applicants
By Doug Doughty doug.doughty@roanoke.com 981-3129

The processing of nearly 200 other resumes gave Dave Koehn ample time to make known his interest in the position of University of Virginia's broadcast voice.

"A friend of mine mentioned it to me," Koehn said. "I had just gotten back from vacation and I was thinking to myself, 'Oh, boy, I hope I'm not too late on this thing,' because I had been gone for a week and a half. I put my name in the hat and, fortunately, it wasn't too late."

Koehn, a 32-year-old University of Kansas graduate, had handled men's basketball play-by-play at the University of Vermont for the past two seasons. He succeeds Mac McDonald, who resigned in April.

"I don't think the expectation ever was that it was my job to lose," said Koehn, who is from Colorado Springs, Colo., where he was a three-time state tennis champion in high school. "In any of these jobs, it's such a numbers game. You always have to have a little bit of luck working with you."

It also helped to have a voice that gets people's attention.

"It was a matter of looking at 200 resumes and listening to 200 voices, which eliminated quite a few of the [applicants] right from the get-go," said Doug Paschal, vice president and general manager of CBS Collegiate Sports Properties.

"We just felt that this young man has all the experience that we were looking for and certainly has the voice."

CBS Collegiate Sports Properties is the rights holder for Virginia and more than a half-dozen other college programs, including the University of Maryland, LSU and Arizona State. Paschal said that UVa officials were involved in the decision.

A committee conducted phone interviews with 20 applicants and brought five to campus for interviews.

"Quite frankly, we all came to the same conclusion, that this was our top guy," Paschal said.

Koehn said he did not meet with either football coach Al Groh or men's basketball coach Dave Leitao during his visit to Charlottesville, but he does expect to be involved in both coaches' call-in shows. He did speak with senior associate athletic director Jon Oliver.

Koehn also said that no decision has been made on analysts. Jim Hobgood, who has handled basketball commentary for more than a decade, said he hopes to meet with Koehn and would consider returning.

"I haven't gotten a contract offer yet," Hobgood said. "I don't know if I've usually gotten an offer by this time. They've given me every indication they want me back, but I don't know where this would be on the priority list."

Longtime football analyst Frank Quayle could not be reached for comment.

Koehn is a protege of Gary Bender, a University of Kansas graduate who once was the lead basketball announcer for CBS. Bender currently is the television voice of the NBA's Phoenix Suns.

"Gary's been part of this whole process," Koehn said. "He's been one of my biggest role models, not just with his broadcasts but the way he handles himself in the business."
 

U.Va. finishes in another top 20
Directors' Cup rates schools' results in NCAA events
Friday, Jun 27, 2008 - 12:07 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

For the third time in four years, the University of Virginia athletic program has posted a top-20 finish in the Directors' Cup race.

U.Va. was 17th in the final 2007-08 standings, which were released yesterday. The Directors' Cup competition reflects schools' performances in NCAA championships. Virginia placed 13th in 2004-05 and 2006-07. Its highest finish, eighth, came in 1998-99.

Virginia Tech finished 37th this year, by far its best showing in the Directors' Cup. The Hokies placed 48th in 2006-07.

Among ACC schools, only North Carolina (No. 14), Florida State (No. 15), U.Va. and Duke (No. 19) fared better than Virginia Tech in 2007-08.

Other than U.Va. and Tech, the only school from this state to crack the top 100 was Old Dominion, at No. 97.

Other Virginia schools that earned Directors' Cup points in Division I were William and Mary (No. 105), Liberty (No. 110), James Madison (No. 117), Richmond (No. 162), VCU (No. 201), George Mason (No. 223), Radford (No. 237), VMI (No. 276) and Hampton (No. 279).

Stanford won the Directors' Cup for 14th consecutive year, finishing with 1,461 points, well ahead of No. 2 UCLA (1,182). The Directors' Cup is sponsored by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, the U.S. Sports Academy and USA Today.