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New Rochelle native qualifies for NBA 2K draft

A New Rochelle man is 1 out of hundreds who qualified for the 2020 NBA 2K draft.

News 12 Staff

Jan 31, 2020, 7:34 PM

Updated 1,776 days ago

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A New Rochelle man is 1 out of hundreds who qualified for the 2020 NBA 2K draft.
Cole Smith, also known as “Oakland Rose” online, could be drafted by one of the league’s 23 teams.
He currently plays point guard in the PlayStation 4 game that he says he spends eight hours a day practicing.
"Playing 2K I just feel more different because I feel like I'm one of the best players in the world and my skills,” says Smith.
News 12 is told the 24-year-old New Rochelle High School alumnus would earn a six-month salary of over $30,000.
Smith says he found NBA 2K as he saw his dream of playing in the real-world NBA slip away while in high school. “I broke my knee cap, so I had microfracture knee surgery and I was out for like a year," he says.
Luckily, this potential dream of joining the NBA virtually can revive his dream.
If selected, he would receive free housing in his team’s home city to train and play in the NBA’s professional virtual league.
Smith described the potential draft as life-changing. He is currently being courted by three teams.
“If I go to Sacramento, six people living in Shaq’s mansion. That’s fun. He actually comes and visits sometimes...” he says. "If I do get drafted, my No. 1 goal is to win a championship just because it’s going to be like the actual NBA. I’m gonna get a ring and a trophy."
Smith says he qualified for the draft in 2019, but unfortunately was not selected by a team.
There has not been a date set for the 2020 NBA 2K League Draft, but it will likely take place in New York City as in past years.