Sacramento Leaders Welcome Omri
August 17, 2009 by Andrew Nicholson
It’s been a whirlwind tour for Omri Casspi since he was drafted by the Sacramento Kings.
Now an Israeli hero who is well on his way to becoming the first native of Israel to play in the NBA, Casspi received a special welcome to the City of Trees on Monday.
Along with team co-owners Joe and Gavin Maloof and president of basketball operations Geoff Petrie, the Kings rookie received a warm welcome by Sacramento leaders at the team’s practice facility complete with food, beverages and a photo area for fans and supporters to take pictures with the Israeli pioneer.
“It’s an honor and a pleasure for us to have the first Israeli player (drafted in the first round),” Gavin Maloof said. “It’s groundbreaking news, and he is going to be a great addition to the squad.”
As the Kings co-owners mingled with Kings fans eager to discuss the team’s young talent and upcoming season, area leaders were overjoyed to discuss the magnitude of Casspi’s arrival in Sacramento and the NBA.
“The community is extremely excited,” Executive Director of the Jewish Federation, Sacramento Chapter, Michal Kohane said smiling. “People brought their kids. There are families here who have three generations in the room. They are very strong fans of the Kings and now they are even stronger because they have Omri.”
As leaders shared their praise and excitement for Casspi’s dynamic game and humble personality, the Kings rookie offered his thanks many times over to everyone in the room, collectively and individually.
“To see all of these great people here, honoring me and (showing) respect for me, it just warms my heart,” Casspi said afterward. “It’s amazing for me. I feel blessed to be in this position.”
Watch Kings.com’s exclusive all access coverage of the event - Sacramento Leaders Welcome Omri.
goodluck caspi we love you and always following you in america
avihay from israel
To draft a player like Omri into our team seems like a great fit. He has the type of character and personality that I believe this community really appreciates. I look forward to seeing him develop over this season. I think there is a decent chance he could turn out to be a player for this team reminiscent of Peja Stojakovich. I`m sure we all remember fondly when Peja really started to break out in the NBA and perhaps Omri will be able to make a similar (or even greater) impact.
~Congrats Omri!
~Allan from Stockton
love you omri and we will come from israel to see games at kings arena
omri good luck, we all belive in you here in israel and we hope you will succeed in the nba like you succeed in maccabi because you are NBA material. DONT FORGET Israel is behind you all the time!!!