When the Toronto Raptors selected Brazilian small forward Bruno Caboclo—a guy off everyone’s radar—with the 20th-overall pick in the NBA Draft, stunned fans and reporters were left scrambling to find out anything about the six-foot-nine, 205-lb. mystery man.
Even ESPN commentator Frank Fraschilla, who seemed to be one of the few journalists with any knowledge of the 18-year-old, and who had apparently insisted that Caboclo could be drafted—though not so early—was taken aback. “I’m blown away,” he said. “This is the all-time swing-for-the-fences move.” Fraschilla went on to describe Caboclo as “a freak athlete” who, in his opinion, is “so raw that he’s about three or four years away” from playing in the NBA.
But besides his freakish athleticism, what else is there to say about Caboclo? Here’s what we know so far:
He was the MVP of 2013’s Basketball Without Borders, Americas.
After the Raptors nabbed Caboclo, GM Masai Ujiri commended his staff for their hard work scoping out talent overseas. “Our scouts have done a great job,” he said. “We try to look for talent around the world.” When Caboclo was named MVP of the 2013 Basketball Without Borders Americas edition for his impressive performance at that camp, the Raptors were intrigued. According to Ujiri, the team continued to track his performance, sending some scouts to watch him play in a tournament in December. Caboclo’s performance was notable enough that Ujiri himself flew down to see him play.
He spent last season playing for Pinheiros
Caboclo—who reportedly has a seven-foot-seven wingspan—wore No. 20 with Esporte Club Pinheiros. He appeared in 16 games last season with the Sao Paolo team (part of the Brazilian League), during which he averaged 4.9 points and 3.1 rebounds. He averaged 8.0 points, shooting .714 from the field and .667 from three-point range, during three Liga Americas games. Here’s a video of Caboclo dunking at the FIBA Americas 2014:
It’s pronounced “Cuh-BO-clo,” and it looks like he’s on Twitter.
Caboclo, a native of Sao Paolo, has only tweeted a handful of times—with the handle @Bruno_Caboclo—but he thanked Toronto last night, and even used the obligatory #WeTheNorth hashtag:
And also from Twitter, here’s a photo of Caboclo wearing a Raptors hat:
https://twitter.com/jfrossi/statuses/482541381484032000
Fans won’t have to wait too long to see him in action
At the team’s post-draft press conference, Raptors’ GM Masai Ujiri said he expects Caboclo to play in the Summer League. This will be Raptors fans’ first chance to see the man dubbed “the Brazilian Kevin Durant” on the court.
