The Toronto Raptors used their only pick in the 2022 NBA Draft on former Arizona big man Christian Koloko, but now, something strange is happening.
Koloko performed well in NBA 2K23 Summer League for the Raptors, averaging 12.7 points and 6.8 rebounds with 2.9 steals and 3.6 blocks per 36 minutes.
It was good productivity, but not terribly surprising. From a talent and value perspective, there is not often much difference between someone selected at No. 28 overall compared to someone like Koloko, who the Raptors drafted with the 33rd pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
But the major difference between those selected in the first round and those selected in the second round, however, simply comes down to contracts. The contracts of second-round picks can get a bit more complicated — and it has with Koloko.
Prospects who were selected within the first round have a standard rookie-scale contract, already negotiated by the league in the collective bargaining agreement. But players selected in the second round do not have a pre-determined contract structure, so teams have more flexibility.
While other rookies who were selected in the second round already have their contracts signed, Koloko still does not. That delay has caused some, like The Athletic’s John Hollinger, to raise their eyebrows.
Random mid-August thought: Is Toronto ever gonna sign Christian Koloko or what?
— John Hollinger (@johnhollinger) August 16, 2022
So what’s going on here? Here is what Tim Bontemps had to say on the latest episode of The Hoop Collective podcast (via ESPN)
“If they sign Christian Koloko to a three-year deal … you have to use an exception or cap space. So if they sign him even to just the standard second-round pick number but sign him for three years, they are going to go over the taxpayer MLE, therefore, they’re going to trigger the hard cap.”
Essentially, what that means is Toronto can sign Koloko to a two-year, $2.7 million minimum deal without triggering the hard cap. But the market value for the players selected in his draft range dictates a contract closer to a four-year, $8.2 million deal, so he may not accept an offer for the minimum.
As noted by Bontemps, because the Raptors do not have cap space, they would ultimately have to use some of their mid-level exception to get a deal done. But if they do that, it would impact their ability to take on additional salary in the future.
There are many reasons why a team would want to retain the ability to take on additional cap space. But it’s especially significant for Toronto because as of right now, they remain one of the potential trade suitors for Kevin Durant.
So as long as Durant remains on the Nets (unless it extends into the regular season), it seems Koloko may have to wait in limbo for a bit longer. But in the meanwhile, at least he is able to stay in shape by getting in some good pick-up runs with Rico Hines (as well as new teammates Pascal Siakam and Scottie Barnes) at UCLA.
