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Bruno Caboclo’s Back: What Does it Mean for the Toronto Raptors?

By Kevin Nimmock

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On New Year’s Day, rookie Bruno Caboclo was recalled from the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, returning to the Toronto Raptors’ full 15-man roster. It was a nice start to 2015 for Caboclo, who was dealt a rough Christmas present when he was sent to the NBA Development League on Christmas day. Caboclo was recalled after only 3 games in Fort Wayne, where he averaged 4.3 points, 2.7 rebounds and 13 minutes per game. So, why was he brought back so quickly?

Raptors GM Masai Ujiri said Caboclo was sent down to the D-League to get more touches and learn to play NBA-level basketball. As a Raptor, Caboclo has only played in three games so far this season. During those games, he  has averaged 2.7 points in five minutes, shooting just 33% from the floor. The 19-year-old has looked uncomfortable, settling for far too many threes. This trend carried over to his time in Fort Wayne, where he attempted 5 three-pointers, nailing just one of them in his debut with the Mad Ants.

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So, if Bruno showed the same flaws in the D-League that led to him being sent there in the first place, it seems silly that he be brought back after such a short stay. It’s not like any key Raptors have gone down with injury lately, warranting his services on the court. No one from the Mad Ants or Raptors have said why Caboclo is back in the 416, but I have an educated guess.

Put simply, Conner Henry, head coach of the Mat Ants, was not giving Caboclo the treatment the Raptors wanted. Caboclo was in Indiana to learn. To do this, the young Brazilian needs to play as much much as possible. Unfortunately, Caboclo was played sparingly for the division leading Mad Ants. He was not allowed to play through his mistakes. Instead, he rode the bench when he made predictable errors. For example, during his second game, Caboclo was benched after four minutes, after he went 0-3 from the field, picked up two personal fouls and a turnover.

Dec 21, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors forward Bruno Caboclo (5) defends against New York Knicks forward Travis Wear (6) at the Air Canada Centre. Toronto defeated New York 118-108. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

Caboclo is still figuring out what his game will look like offensively. This process requires some trial and error. Caboclo needs to miss shots before he can make them, but if he gets benched when he starts missing shots in the D-League, there is no reason for him to be there. Keep in mind, this isn’t Henry’s fault. Rather, this is a systemic issue for the Raps.

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The team doesn’t have its own D-League affiliate. The Raptors share the Mad Ants with 14 other teams. So, the Mad Ants have little to do with the Raptors, and no reason to give very much care to their needs. Thus, their prerogative is to win games, not to help develop lanky Brazilian rookies. It makes sense for Henry to bench Caboclo when he can’t make shots, because Henry has the responsibility to help his team win. This means the Raps had to bring Caboclo back to Toronto without him developing much. Ujiri likely hopes Caboclo will learn more from practicing with Kyle Lowry, DeMar DeRozan, and the rest of the Raptors.

So, the Raptors need to work towards getting a D-League team of their own, if they want the development system to work properly. If not, what happened with Caboclo will continue to happen. Think about a team like the Spurs, who seem to always have such a deep roster. My guess is their D-League affiliate, the Austin Spurs, have been a big factor in their success. Hopefully Caboclo will be more successful in the likely limited minutes coach Dwane Casey will give him in the Raptors’ next few games.

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