4 burning questions Raptors must answer before the season starts
By Mike Luciano
3. How long will Christian Koloko take?
Koloko was taken with the No. 33 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft with the expectation that he would become an impact starter at some point in the future. However, he was also taken with Ujiri and Bobby Webster knowing that most of his rookie year was going to be spent in Mississauga.
Koloko’s Summer League stint didn’t show us anything we didn’t expect. He was utterly dominant on the defensive end, yet there were some rough edges that needed smoothing out on offense. His play in the first few Raptors 905 games will tell us a lot about how far along he is.
Toronto Raptors: Christian Koloko is still raw.
Khem Birch might be the backup center right now, but the Raptors will likely move off him if Koloko starts to show he can handle himself as a backup center behind Siakam. If his post finishing gets slightly better, the Raptors could be intrigued enough by his development to break the glass case and let him star.
If anything, Toronto should be excited about what he can bring as a rim protector. No matter what sorts of twists and turns Koloko takes the Raptors toward in the next few years, that athletic frame is going to be a shot-swatting machine when he’s healthy.