NBA Draft 2016: 5 best destinations for Denzel Valentine

Denzel Valentine may already be out of the NCAA Tournament, but here are the five best NBA situations for the Michigan State Spartans star shooting guard.

While one of the college basketball’s darlings of the NCAA Tournament in the Michigan State Spartans were eliminated by No. 15 Middle Tennessee State last Friday, it’s not the end of the world for the Spartans’ senior star shooting guard Denzel Valentine.

Valentine had a fantastic senior season in East Lansing for the Spartans in the Big 10, averaging 19.2 points per game, 7.8 assists, and 7.5 rebounds at the shooting guard position in 2015-16. Valentine may be a fourth-year player for Michigan State, but he does project as a very late lottery pick to a mid-to-late first round pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Given that he’s shown an ability to play well on both ends of the floor with an offensive rating of 127.2 and a defensive rating of 94.0, Valentine projects as a player capable of making the transition to the NBA after four years in East Lansing. He’s learned a ton from soon-to-be Hall of Fame head coach in Tom Izzo in his four years with the Spartans.

While Valentine shouldn’t go in the top end of the NBA Draft Lottery by any means, here are the five best team situations for the 2015-16 Big 10 Player of the Year to land in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Next: 5. Denver Nuggets (from Houston Rockets)