Hollinger himself had a front-row seat to the Raptors fireworks on draft night in 2014. He was aware of Toronto’s interest in Caboclo, though his own scouting department didn’t share the Raptors’ enthusiasm. “I do remember when we were doing our background on him that we called a couple people down there and we basically said, ‘Are there these moments or flashes in practice where you’re just like, oh my god?’” Hollinger said, probing for the kind of goosebumps moment that a 17-year-old Kobe conjured back in 1996. “We asked a couple people this question. They’re like, no, not really, man.” The Grizzlies had the 22nd pick in the draft, just two spots behind Toronto. The Raptors offered the Grizzlies their 37th pick to move up. “We were like, well, if they already have 20 and they’re trying to get [22], they must really want this Bruno guy.” Caboclo, in a sense, was the NBA draft’s last mystery man. -via The Ringer / June 30, 2024
