Sacramento Kings All-Time Starting Five: Small Forward

Predrag Stojaković began playing professional-level basketball in his native Yugoslavia (SFR Yugoslavia) in 1992 at the age of 15 and moved to Greece the following year. After waiting a year for his Greek citizenship, Stojaković played in the Greek Basketball League for the next four seasons. 

The Sacramento Kings selected Stojaković with the 14th pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, while the forward was still playing in Greece. Stojaković would not make his debut for the Kings until the 1998-1999 NBA season, in which he started just one game.

After a second season coming off the bench, Stojaković finally cracked the starting lineup in the 2000-2001 season at the age of 23. The 6’10” Serbian wasted no time making an impact, as he averaged over 20 points per game in his first season as a starter. Stojaković also immediately staked his claim as one of the league’s premier marksmen, putting up shooting percentages of 47% from the field and 40% from three-point range. 

Stojaković made his first NBA All-Star team in his fourth season, averaging over 21 points per game on career-high shooting percentages of 48.4% from the field and 41.6% from three. Peja also won the first of his two consecutive Three-Point Contest titles during All-Star Weekend in 2002.

The former teenage phenom’s ascension to a starting role with the Kings coincided with the most successful years in the franchise’s history. Beginning in the 2000-2001 season and ending with the 2004-2005 season, the Sacramento Kings averaged 56 wins per season. The Kings made three trips to the Western Conference Semifinals and one trip to the Western Conference Finals in that stretch.

Stojaković was an integral part of those teams, averaging over 21 points and shooting over 40% from three-point range combined over the course of those five seasons. Along the way, Peja finished second in the 2001 Most Improved Player Award voting, made three All-Star teams, and earned an All-NBA Second Team spot in 2004 while finishing fourth in MVP voting that season. 

There is very little debate that Stojaković is the greatest small forward in Sacramento Kings history, and he remains one of the franchise’s most beloved former players. The combination of individual shooting prowess and excellence on the court, along with major contributions to the most successful period in team history, has cemented Peja’s legacy amongst Kings fans.

Lingering neck and back injuries forced Stojaković’s retirement from basketball in 2011 after winning a championship with the Dallas Mavericks. He had his #16 jersey retired by the Kings in 2014. 

Peja returned to a role in the team’s front office in 2015. Over the course of his tenure with the Kings’ organization, Stojaković served as Director of Player Personnel and Development, Assistant General Manager, and General Manager of the team’s G-League affiliate, the Stockton Kings. He then stepped down from the Assistant GM role in 2020.