Roko Ukic Must Prove Himself This Season
By Peter D. WalkerEven though it is still early in his career, this upcoming season could be a make or break campaign for former Raptors draft pick Roko Ukic. The 23 year old, 6’5” guard from Crotia has signed with Italian team Lottomatica Roma after playing last season in the Spanish league.
Roko played with Barcleona where he was on loan from original team - Tau Ceramica. Last season, Ukic averaged a mere 4.6 points and 2.0 assists in only 14.15 minutes per game for Barcelona in a back-up role.
Since being called ‘the steal of the second round’, Ukic has languished on the bench and struggled with injuries over the past two seasons. He is now preparing to play for his third team in three years. Remarkably, some 2005 draft boards projected Ukic going as high as the mid-teens overall. For instance, ESPN's Chad Ford pegged him between 14th and 27th in the first round.
Roko’s lack of consistent minutes begs the question, “is Ukic anywhere near as good as some thought when he was drafted?” The answer: probably not. Otherwise he’d have earned more minutes than he has received so far.
Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo is saying all the right things about Roko’s latest move to Roma. The GM said that playing in Roma bodes well for Ukic's development, because he is expected to finally see more regular playing time.
Earlier, Colangelo indicated the Raptors were looking at potential buy-out options with Ukic’s Euroleague team. Now Bryan says the Raptors have no plans to bring him to North America in the immediate future. The buy-out amount on Ukic’s deal remains restrictive and reportedly is north of the $1 million mark.
The Raptor landscape has changed since the time that Maurizio and Bryan were considering bringing Ukic to the NBA. Now, even if the Raptors wanted to bring Roko to the NBA, they don't have the cap space because they signed Jason Kapono with the mid-level exception and Maceo Bastan with their biennial exception.
According to Colangelo, "The most we could offer is a minimum contract given that our tools have been utilized in other ways."
Nonetheless, its up to Roko to make the most of his minutes in Roma and prove he has the talent to be an elite level player. If not, Ukic will remain more of a project than a legit NBA prospect and the odds of him ever donning a Raptor uniorm will be remote.
This upcoming season will be very telling for Roko Ukic and his potential future as a Toronto Raptor.
This upcoming season will be very telling for Roko Ukic and his potential future as a Toronto Raptor.
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