Disappointment, confusion, anger. These were the emotions Toronto Raptors fans went through in a 10-minute span between the announcements of picks No. 18 and 20 of the 2014 NBA Draft.
So if you were fuming immediately after seeing Toronto go way off the board and take Brazilian international Bruno Caboclo, you have every right.
June 26, 2014 was supposed to be a night when Canadian hoops was celebrated in all its glory. Starting with Thornhill, Ontario’s Andrew Wiggins going first overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers, which kicked off a roll that saw three other Canucks get drafted, and culminating with the Raptors’ pick at No. 20. The pick that was supposed to be Brampton, Ontario’s Tyler Ennis.
Then the Phoenix Suns swooped in and spoiled the party, taking the Syracuse point guard at 18.
But that was just the setup.
Two picks later, with names like Shabazz Napier, Clint Capela and Rodney Hood still on the board, Raptors GM Masai Ujiri decided to select Caboclo — a six-foot-nine, 200-lb. combo forward from Sao Paolo, Brazil, according to DraftExpress. Or, in Raptors’ fans eyes, a giant question mark.
A move like this seems typical of the franchise. With so much momentum coming from the their playoff run, the pick seems like a roadblock.
It’s obviously tough to have a real opinion on the 18-year-old when no one knows anything about him, but why not just take a surefire thing to keep the good vibes surrounding the club?
It seems no one knows.
There is some back story to this inexplicable pick it seems, as ESPN’s Marc Stein reported that Ujiri had promised Caboclo the club would take him with their 37th-overall selection. There was fear he wouldn’t last that long.
Raptors coach Dwane Casey also seems to be pretty high on him.
“He’s one of those players with a tremendous amount of potential: athletic, wingspan, same wingspan as JaVale McGee,” said Casey. “He’s raw, but again he’s going to be a guy that develops in our program and grow and do a lot of things for us.”
Regardless of the coach’s words, though, it’s hard not to be angry with the pick as a fan. Thankfully, however, the club’s second round selections featured some more familiar faces, with Toronto taking UConn’s DeAndre Daniels at No. 37 and Xavier Thames of San Diego State at No. 59, which the club ended up trading to the Brooklyn Nets.
Daniels won a national championship with Connecticut this season, averaging 13.1 points and six rebounds per game, and the price for giving up No. 59 was more than likely some cash coming back.
A moment of sanity in an otherwise baffling draft.
— With files from the Canadian Press
