The Toronto Raptors announced Friday they have signed centre Christian Koloko (co-LOW-co) to a multi-year contract. Per team policy, financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Koloko, 7-foot-1, 230 pounds, was picked 33rd overall by the Raptors in the 2022 NBA Draft. He started in all five games at the NBA 2022 2K23 Summer League averaging 7.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, a team-high 2.2 blocks, 1.8 steals and 22.0 minutes.
During three seasons at the University of Arizona, he averaged 7.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 1.8 blocks and 17.9 minutes in 91 career games (56 starts) with the Wildcats. He shot 59 percent (262-439) from the field and left Arizona ranked fifth in school history with 162 career blocks.
As a junior last season, Koloko posted averages of 12.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.8 blocks (led the Pac-12) and 25.4 minutes in 37 games (all starts). He shot .635 (193-288) from the floor, scored 20+ points six times and recorded 10 double-doubles. Koloko was named the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player and was an All-Pac-12 First Team selection. He became the first player in conference history to be named Defensive Player of the Year and Most Improved Player in the same season. Koloko also tied Arizona’s single-season record with 102 total blocks.
A native of Douala, Cameroon, the same hometown as Raptors forward Pascal Siakam, Koloko participated in the 2017 Basketball Without Borders Africa and the 2018 Basketball Without Borders Global Camp.