The Toronto Raptors selected Christian Coloco of the University of Arizona with their 33rd overall pick in the NBA Draft – their only pick of the event in 2022.
Koloko, seven feet and one center, which shares the same hometown as Pascal Siakam in Cameroon, averaged 12.6 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.8 blocks as a teenager with the Wildcats this season and was named Defender of the Year. Pac-12.
The 22-year-old was also included in the first team of the All-Pac-12 and won the best player this season.
“If he defends the rim as well as I think he does, it gives you a chance to be even more aggressive on the wings and try to be even more agile,” Raptors head coach Nick Nurs said after as the team chose him.
Some notes from Blake Murphy of Sportsnet The Fan 590, who called Coloco an “extremely Raptors-y” choice:
• “An older prospect who hasn’t played basketball that long and still has a possible development track. The same hometown as Pascal, which could help with the adaptation phase. It could probably help now in spare C minutes , but it’s more about what can be done in defense, “Murphy wrote.
• Defense Report: Unreal length, good protection time around the rim, drastically improved throughout the year, big bike and Raptors will embrace its wild endings / problem to correct mistakes while working on smoothing them.
• Offensive report: Effective in the role of moderate use, shooting range up to 17 feet and can extend up to three points in time, should be a good option for running the rim and ends very well in a dunker / drop, will require a little patience with revolutions and limited handles / counters
• “We can see a scenario where Koloko is up and down, going up to 905 as injuries / rotations dictate. They will want him to get enough reps there to expand the offensive package and confidence, but his defense can help in the short term, to the point where he can fight in minutes, “added Murphy.
The selection, which is the Raptors’ first selection for the 2022 draft, was acquired by the San Antonio Spurs, but originally belonged to the Detroit Pistons.
Toronto exchanged their choice in the first round (20th overall) with Goran Dragic in the trading deadline with Thaddeus Young, Drew Yubanks and the eventual 33rd overall pick.
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