Razeen Gutta
Three African-born basketballers were picked in the NBA draft this week, with 22-year-old Christian Koloko selected by the 2019 champions, the Toronto Raptors.
The Cameroonian was the 33rd pick of the auction, marking an historic rise from initially playing Basketball Without Borders (BWB) five years ago, to now being selected to appear on the grandest stage.
BWB camps develop some of Africa’s young talents in an attempt to promote the sport and bring about positive change.
Born in the city of Douala, Koloko took part in the Africa camp before moving to the United States, where he played college basketball for the University of Arizona.
He will play with his countryman, and Raptors’ star forward, Pascal Siakam. Koloko’s new head coach Nick Nurse believes that Siakam’s presence will help him acclimatise.
“He won’t have to wander around nearly as much. I know that sounds kind of silly, but just finding your way around and getting into places and knowing ‘Hey, there’s the strength coach and there’s the chef and here’s where you park’ and all that stuff helps you get to work,” Nurse told ESPN.
Khalifa Diop was selected as the 39th pick of the draft, with the Cleveland Cavaliers picking him up.
The 20-year-old has been playing his trade at Gran Canaria in Spain since 2017 and is the first Senegalese to be drafted since Gorgui Dieng nearly a decade ago.
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s Yannick Nzosa was the 54th pick of the draft, and was chosen by the Washington Wizards.
The 18-year-old will also be shifting from Spain where he had played for Unicaja Baloncesto Malaga.
Image source: @DraftKingsNation
