Rim-protecting Christian Koloko finds ideal landing spot with Toronto

The first beaming face Christian Koloko saw on a video call from Toronto on NBA Draft night last week needed no introduction.

“What’s up! What’s up!” Koloko said.

“What’s up!” Raptors president Masai Ujiri responded, chuckling. “What’s up?”

What was up: The next step in what is already a five-year relationship. Ujiri, who first scouted Koloko at a 2017 Basketball Without Borders event in South Africa, then took Koloko on a video tour around the Raptors’ offices, saying hello to GM Bobby Webster and coach Nick Nurse, among others.

Also on draft night, not surprisingly, was a call between Koloko and Raptors standout Pascal Siakam. Again, no introduction necessary: They’re both from Douala, Cameroon, and both are players Ujiri has long known well.

Born in the United Kingdom but having grown up in Nigeria, Ujiri has long had an eye on developing African basketball talent, even those such as Koloko and Siakam who grew up playing soccer.

“Just coming from Cameroon, people don’t really care about basketball,” Koloko said in his draft-night interview.

So Koloko played soccer until he was 17 but after showing initial promise — and a height that eventually grew to 7 feet — Koloko was invited to Basketball Without Borders. Soon afterward, he began making more moves toward his development: He relocated to Southern California to play for Birmingham High School and then Sierra Canyon, before spending three seasons at Arizona.

During all the time, Ujiri kept an eye on him.

“I knew if I slipped to the second round, Toronto would be a good fit for me for sure,” Koloko said. “They’ve been following me for a long time now, since 2017. Every time I see Masai, we have a great connection. So I was really happy when I had my name called by the Toronto Raptors.”

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Here’s a look at what’s ahead for Koloko, with comments from post-draft press conferences:

Salary slot: Second-round picks are not subject to the rookie salary scale and teams are not obligated to guarantee them anything. But in exchange for extending their rights to that player, most teams extend high second round picks multi-year contracts worth 25%-75% more than the rookie minimum (about $1 million in 2022-23) and guarantee at least part of it. The player taken at Koloko’s No. 33 spot last year, Ohio’s Jason Preston, received a three-year deal worth $4.46 million with the first two years guaranteed, according to HoopsRumors.com

Joined by: The Raptors did not have another draft pick in 2022 but signed former Rutgers guard Ron Harper Jr. to a two-way contract while also offering summer-league deals to former UA and BYU guard Alex Barcello, along with former Oregon and Boise State forward Abu Kigab. Barcello transferred from Arizona in the spring of 2019 just before Koloko arrived.

Potential fit: Though he is expected to need time to grow, possibly even with some play in the G League, Koloko has a wide-open opportunity with the Raptors, who are in need of a proven big man. The 6-9 Siakam even played the position at times last season. Koloko is expected to give the Raptors a rim-protecting presence and could be the lob-finishing threat the team has lacked.

Webster says: “He was a long, skinny lanky kid and that’s why you follow the development. Now, five years later, you see the progression. I think even at Arizona from when he first went there to being Defensive Player of the Year this year — you want to continue to see that climb. Everyone knows, with our development and the amount of resources we want to put into a guy like him, that the sky’s the limit.

“When can he contribute? I think that’s probably a fair question. We probably won’t know until we get to be around him a little bit more. But I think as far as being a 7-foot rim protector that we don’t have, that’s what he is.

“Historically with second-round picks, it’s a different journey. When you come in as a first-round pick, there’s a bit more expectation and maybe responsibility that you hold but we’re not ones to put any boxes around these guys. He’ll be in summer league, and we’ll see what he can do. I think we’re going in pretty open-minded.”

Koloko says: “I never really had a chance to work on my game (after) my first year (at UA in 2019-20). I was home and I couldn’t do anything with the California (COVID) rules so I think I really lost on that period of time. And this year we had a new coaching staff. I talked with the (UA) coaches and they told me how they wanted to use me and how I was going to get better and I just needed to commit to work hard, and that’s what I did. That’s why I had a lot more confidence this year.

“The first thing I’m going to give to (the Raptors) is my defense, just being that rim protector, having the defensive presence. Moving the way I move for somebody my size, I think, is really rare. And being able to switch on guards and with the way the Raptors play.... they like that big, big lineup, and I feel like I can play in whichever lineup, the big lineup, a smaller lineup. I can be there. If you have to switch, I can do that. Offensively, I’ll just do whatever the coach wants me to do, setting screens, catch lobs, take the open shots …. Just whatever it takes to win.”