By Peter D. Walker

To a certain degree, Roko Ukic has become Toronto’s forgotten Euro.

That being said, there are signs that the Toronto Raptors are trying their best to bring Ukic to the NBA to join a Raps team that already boasts a number of European players.

Former Raptor GM, Rob Babcock drafted Ukic a couple of years ago in the second round in the 41st slot. This while Ukic slipped from where some boards had him pegged to go as high as the 16th pick in the first round. The Croatian Ukic was widely lauded as the steal of the draft.

Then it began to unravel for Roko and the Raptors.

                 
                                 Roko Ukic                                        Ukic Driving Over Jorge Garbajosa

Ukic understandably accepted a more attractive deal to play with Tau in Spain and spurned the Raptors. Unfortunately, he did not get the playing time he had hoped. Couple that with injuries and Ukic had a disappointing season.

Fast forward to today and a report out of Spain which states that Roko Ukic is set to sign with the Toronto Raptors. The problem is that the 23 year old Ukic has a hefty buyout and two years left in his Spanish deal.

Bryan Colangelo was interviewed on the FAN590 and initially made it sound as if the report might be baseless. However, as Bryan proceeded it became apparent that the report, while premature, was not entirely erroneous. Colangelo confirmed the Raptors and Maurizio Gheradini are in fact examining ways to bring Ukic to Canada, sooner than later.

According to the Raptor GM, the team is trying to determine the exact number for Roko’s buyout. Once they finalize that number they can proceed to the next stages of negotiations. Colangelo went on to explain that he envisions Ukic as a third point guard behind TJ Ford and Jose Calderon who could potentially spend more time at the two.

The time might be right for Roko to move to the NBA. Obviously, Gheradini and his ‘eyes in Europe’ feel the kid has an NBA future. They also know that there may be an adjustment period for the youngster as we saw with Jose Calderon’s first year struggles. So it might be best to get Ukic to the shores of Lake Ontario and start his NBA learning curve now.

There is no doubt the Toronto Raptors have a real interest in Roko Ukic. Bryan Colangelo said just enough to let it be known that he and Maurizio like what they have seen of Roko so far.

Now, it remains to be seen if Roko Ukic will delight Toronto’s large Croatian community as a member of the Toronto Raptors in 2007-2008 or if they will have to wait another year.

ROKO UKIC
Player Profile
Height: 6' 5"
Weight: 185 lbs.
Position: Point Guard
Home: Croatia
Team: FC Barcelona
Born: December 5, 1984