Croatian forward Luka Samanic has revealed that he secretly wanted to play for the San Antonio Spurs before the NBA Draft.

Per Daniela Rogulj of Total Croatia News, the 6-foot-11 forward admitted that he wanted to don the Spurs jersey because of the franchise’s rich history with European players.

“Before the draft, I spoke to an agent who told me between 16 and 35. They told me you could be 16, and you could be 35, that the draft is always unpredictable, and you never know what’s going to happen,” Samanic explained. “I was ready for anything, and I secretly wanted San Antonio because they have some history with Europe and when I heard that I was 19, I was overjoyed.”

Thankfully, his wish came true as he was picked 19th overall by the Spurs. He even shared that before the draft, he had dinner with some of San Antonio’s coaching staff — including team icon Tim Duncan.

Time will only tell if Luka Samanic will develop like the European players that came before him. Will he have a Hall of Fame career like Tony Parker of Manu Ginobili? From the looks of it, he has all the tools to make it big in the league.