Christian Koloko

Koloko, from Cameroon, was drafted by the Raptors as the third pick of the second round, 33rd overall. In his final year at Arizona, the 21-year-old averaged ...

Last year, the Raptors picked Florida State forward Scottie Barnes with the fourth overall pick. Koloko was the 2021-22 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, and an all-conference first-team selection. Pretty decent pick and roll player, and he’s got good feet.” “Like, really, really happy that we selected him.” The Toronto Raptors have selected Christian Koloko from Arizona with the 33rd pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. TORONTO (AP) — The Toronto Raptors selected Arizona center Christian Koloko with the 33rd overall pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night.

The Toronto Raptors officially have someone taller than six foot nine on the roster. Christian Koloko is a seven-foot-one center hailing from Cameroon who ...

He is from Douala, the same hometown as Siakam, too. The fit goes deeper than that. The Toronto Raptors officially have someone taller than six foot nine on the roster.

After a loooong wait throughout the first round, the Raptors landed on Arizona's Koloko with their lone draft pick.

Koloko played three seasons in Arizona, and averaged 12.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, and an insane 2.8 blocks in 25 minutes per game for the Wildcats last season. There were several strong candidates remaining at 33, but Koloko seems like a strong fit for the Raptors. For one, he’s big — like, an actual big.

Christian Koloko came to Arizona about as raw as you can be. Three years later, he's an NBA draft pick. The 7-foot center has been picked by the Toronto ...

A native of Cameron, Koloko is the fifth foreign-born UA player to be drafted. Koloko was the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year in 2021-22, as well as the league’s Most Improved Player. He averaged 12.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.8 blocks and 1.4 assists while shooting 63.5 percent from the field. The 7-foot center has been picked by the Toronto Raptors in the second round of the 2022 NBA Draft, getting taken 33rd overall.

It is the same now as it was the first day he walked into the Sierra Canyon High School gym. Just like Andre Chevalier did before them, NBA scouts took one ...

Mix in a coaching change, and Koloko arrived at his junior season still waiting for people to notice he was even there. They worked on his mid-range game and on his moves in the pick-and-roll, helping him establish more than just his finishing skills. Koloko moved to California, taking up residence with his sister, Stephanie, who emigrated a dozen years earlier to pursue her education. Koloko grew up playing soccer, but a growth spurt sent him to the basketball court, where he figured out a few moves by watching YouTube videos of Hakeem Olajuwon and Kevin Durant. Spotted at a Basketball Without Borders camp by Chris Ebersole, the NBA’s associate vice president of international basketball operations — who had the same reaction as Chevalier and NBA scouts: “He was desperately new to the game, rail thin, but so much potential,’’ he says. Ebersole could see this was not merely a player looking to use basketball as a means to an end, but someone who wanted to develop into something and someone. He is still raw right now, and offensively limited — not surprising for someone who didn’t fully commit himself to basketball until five years ago.

The 22-year-old seven-foot-one power forward was the Pac-12 defensive player of the year last season at Arizona and has a connection with Pascal Siakam.

It’s obviously our job to find them but I think operating here felt a bit more comfortable than obviously having the No. 4 pick last year.” Skip Advertisement Skip Advertisement

BROOKLYN, N.Y. - Christian Koloko is the newest member of the Toronto Raptors. Toronto took the seven-foot-one...

Toronto took the seven-foot-one centre 33rd overall in Thursday night’s NBA Draft. The Raptors had only one pick this year. Toronto Raptors draft centre Christian Koloko 33rd overall

He's long, great defensively and already has a connection with Pascal Siakam: meet Christian Koloko, the Raptors' newest draft pick.

I’ve seen him play quite a bit,” said Nurse. “It’s always hard to tell. I think that there’s probably positionally a chance for him to fight his way in there and get some time.” However, he came to basketball later in life, so there could still be some development time there. The first thing that should stand out to you about Koloko is his dimensions. “I’ve seen quite a bit of him. Even more exciting than his ability to turn aside shots, though, is how fleet of foot Koloko is.

The Toronto Raptors selected Christian Koloko with the No. 33 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.

For the Raptors, Koloko likely won't make an immediate impact as he seems more in line for one of Toronto's long-term projects. Koloko joins a Toronto team that overcame a slow start and injuries to make it to the playoffs. Selected No. 33 overall in the first-round of the 2022 NBA Draft, Koloko is a seven footer, who played college basketball for three years at the University of Arizona. In his junior year, Koloko was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, Pac-12 Most Improved Player and he also made first-team All-Pac-12.

Arizona center Christian Koloko was taken by Masai Ujiri and the Toronto Raptors with the No. 33 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.

Koloko came alive late in the year, confirming in Toronto’s mind that he was a player with using capital on. With 12.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per contest to his name for the Wildcats, it could be argued that he was as impactful, if not more so, than No. 18 pick Dalen Terry when he was on the floor. The Raptors were famous for their lack of tremendous height last year, as they didn’t have one player listed at 6-9 or greater that finished the year on the roster.

TORONTO (AP) — The Toronto Raptors selected Arizona center Christian Koloko with the 33rd overall pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night.

Last year, the Raptors picked Florida State forward Scottie Barnes with the fourth overall pick. Koloko was the 2021-22 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, and an all-conference first-team selection. Pretty decent pick and roll player, and he’s got good feet.” “Like, really, really happy that we selected him.” Koloko was also one of 10 semifinalists for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Award. TORONTO (AP) — The Toronto Raptors selected Arizona center Christian Koloko with the 33rd overall pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night.

Après trois saisons dans la célébrissime université d'Arizona, le pivot camerounais Christian Junior Koloko est l'espoir africain qui devrait être choisi le ...

» J'ai le Cameroun dans mon cœur, dans mon âme. Je suis heureux de vivre une étape supplémentaire dans le voyage de ma vie, et je suis enthousiaste quant à la suite. Ce soir, Koloko, dont la cote ne cesse de grimper sur les prédictions des experts de la Draft, saura quelle sera sa nouvelle étape, et entrera dans la NBA par la grande porte, sans oublier le chemin parcouru : « Quand je regarde dans le rétroviseur, je me dis que j'ai fait beaucoup de sacrifices, mais que ça en vaut vraiment le coup. Quel joueur ! Quel intérieur n'aimerait pas recevoir des conseils de Joël [rires] ? C'est le meilleur pivot de la ligue ! » Il est élu dans le meilleur cinq majeur de la saison pour les équipes de la moitié Ouest du pays. Je pense que le fait de vouloir être compétitif et de devenir le meilleur élève possible m'a aussi permis aujourd'hui d'utiliser ce même état d'esprit dans le basket.

Le Camerounais a maintenu une moyenne de 12,6 points par match, 7,3 rebonds ainsi que 2,8 blocs. Il a été désigné Joueur défensif de l'année de la section Pac ...

Les Raptors ont acquis le choix le 10 février par le biais d’une transaction avec les Spurs de San Antonio. Drew Eubanks, Thaddeus Young ainsi qu’un choix de deuxième tour, qui appartenait originalement aux Pistons de Detroit, ont été échangés aux Raptors contre les services de Goran Dragic et un choix de premier tour lors de l’encan 2022. BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Les Raptors de Toronto ont jeté leur dévolu sur Christian Koloko avec leur unique choix du repêchage 2022, jeudi.

Le Camerounais Christian Koloko a finalement été pris par les Raptors de Toronto en 33e position, le Sénégalais Khalifa Diop par les Cavaliers de Cleveland ...

Les Wizards de Washington donneront-ils une vraie chance à ce tout jeune intérieur ? Koloko, Diop et Nzosa ont, eux, dû attendre le deuxième tour de la draft (chacune des 30 équipes NBA a le droit de recruter deux éléments, en théorie), ce qui ne leur garantit pas un contrat aussi solide que pour les débutants (rookies) sélectionnés au premier tour. Trois nouveaux joueurs africains devraient bientôt intégrer les rangs du meilleur championnat de basket-ball au monde, la Ligue nord-américaine (NBA). Il s’agit du Camerounais Christian Koloko, 22 ans, né à Douala ; du Sénégalais Khalifa Diop, 20 ans ; et du Congolais Yannick Nzosa, 18 ans, originaire de Kinshasa.

Christian Koloko is the newest member of the Toronto Raptors. Toronto took the seven-foot-one centre 33rd overall in Thursday's NBA Draft.

That would be Bennedict Mathurin, the Montreal native, also out of Arizona, who went No. 6 to the Indiana Pacers. You can get to work and he is a hard worker,” Nurse said. Raptors head coach Nick Nurse said the Raptors scouts have been on Koloko for quite a while. Article content Article content Article content