Bruce Weber has coached several players who have been selected in the NBA Draft, but he experienced the event up close for the first time on Thursday.
Former Illinois center Meyers Leonard (pictured to the left with David Stern) invited the new Kansas State coach to the draft, and sat with him and four other close friends and relatives in the “Green Room” until the Portland Trail Blazers took him with the No. 11 pick.
Sharing the joy of becoming a lottery pick with a former player was a thrill.
“I was obviously excited for our player and his family,” Weber said. “As a coach, it’s a nice moment. It’s a proud moment. His story makes it even better. He was a kid who grew very late, and came from a small town. He was not a highly touted player, now he is a lottery pick. You hope you had something to do with that in his development as a player and a person.”
It was fun to be in the middle of all the action, too.
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