The 23-year-old, who was born in Victoria, Australia, earned himself an international debut last summer and followed it with a call-up to Warren Gatland's Wales squad in January.
But it was as one of Ospreys' exciting upstarts that King - now a regular in the second row alongside Alun Wyn Jones - recalls making the greatest strides.
King's way into the Ospreys setup was via the Anglo-Welsh Cup and, despite a disappointing tournament for the Welsh province this time around, he expects to see a handful of youngsters follow his path.
"The Anglo-Welsh Cup was the way that I got into the Ospreys squad so it is a great platform for players to use," said King.
"There are loads of people coming through - the amount of talent coming through is brilliant. If you are not involved in those, you can see people who are going to be pushing you.
"Ben John is another player who has come through in the Anglo-Welsh Cup and Dafydd Howells went away with Wales in the summer.
"There used to be only two or three players who got the chance but it seems to have gone the other way around."
King's rise to prominence was abrupt and he found himself brushing shoulders with the idols of his teenage years well ahead of schedule.
But the Australian-born lock was not overawed by the idea of forming a partnership with last summer's British & Irish Lions captain, Jones.
"There are people you watch on TV and you think 'I would just like to meet them' - Alun is one of them," added King.
"He is super professional in everything that he does, on and off the field, and he sets a great example."
With two Welsh caps to his name, King will be after more over the next six weeks - but the likes of Jones, Luke Charteris and Andrew Coombs stand in his way.
However, the 23-year-old, who converted from flanker over the course of the last 18 months, has no regrets over choosing Wales ahead of the other options at his disposal.
With Australia as a birthplace and English parents - he also attended Shropshire's Ellesmere College - it did not have to be Wales.
"It is something I said before - I spent 99 per cent of my life in Wales," said King.
"I think I have done alright. I am just happy to get the amount of game time that I have had - there is always going to be competition.
"Injuries are the main thing - most people get their opportunities through that.
"If you perform in the regional level, then things will come of that. I don't expect to get in but if I do, then that's a bonus."
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