There's a joke amongst some in the Kings front office that DeMarcus Cousins is the "People's Choice" in this year's draft.
And that moniker was bestowed up Cousins before his impressive workout this month. He earned that in April.
But with the Kings sitting at No. 5 in the first round, there remains the chance Cousins won't be around for the Kings to select.
The Kings have received inquiries about trading down, but let's assume the Kings stay at five.
That forces us to examine how Georgetown's Greg Monroe would fit on the Kings.
The chatter amongst some around the league is that Monroe will be the pick if the Kings can't land Cousins.
Of course, that could be a mirage and the Kings might select Al-Farouq Aminu or Ekpe Udoh.
But as of now, let's assume Monroe is the man. Is he a good fit? Is he different from the other Kings' big men?
Monroe was in town today for his second workout with the Kings.
One question about Monroe had been was he too much like what the Kings already had in Spencer Hawes, who has since been traded to Philadelphia.
Monroe cites passing as one of his strong suits along with the ability to play on the perimeter, two of Hawes' better qualities.
Statistically, Monroe's freshman season was similar to Hawes' only college season.
Hawes averaged 14.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots at the University of Washington before declaring for the draft in 2007.
Monroe averaged 12.7 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots as a freshman. Monroe averaged 16.1 points and 9.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots last season.
Monroe would have the advantage of two years of college vs. Hawes' one season. So he should be physically ready to compete sooner.
That's essential considering with the Kings' current depth chart at power forward and center. Monroe would have to be able to play both spots with Samuel Dalembert at center and Carl Landry at power forward. Jason Thompson can play both spots.
So if Monroe is the pick, he'd have to be ready to contribute immediately.
Monroe will workout for Golden State on Sunday. He said he's thought about what it would be like to be a King while also wondering about other team's he's visited.
"Yeah it crosses my mind sometimes," Monroe said. "But I feel like no matter where I end up I've got to make myself fit in. I've got to do whatever's best for the team and work on fitting in from Day 1."
Cousins would still be the best fit (in my opinion) but if he's not there, Monroe might be learning to fit in with the Kings starting June 24.
*Below are the post-workout interviews from Friday's workouts along with some footage courtesy of Kings.com
The next pre-draft workout is Tuesday. No word on who will be in that workout yet.
The Kings have interest in Gordon Hayward and Luke Babbitt, but I don't expect them to show up based on talks earlier this week.
Nevada guard Armon Johnson is a possibility. He missed his initial workout with the Kings because of strep throat.
I'm also told USC guard Mike Gerrity, who played for Kings coach Paul Westphal at Pepperdine, will be at that workout.
June 18 Interviews
June 18 workout footage
--Jason Jones
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