FORMER Toronto Raptors starlet Christian Koloko has participated in a private workout held for several free agents during the 2024 Las Vegas Summer League.
The former second-round pick has been dealing with a career-threatening blood clot issue, which has prevented him from playing for or practicing with an NBA team since January.
The workout took place on Saturday morning, Koloko’s agent Calvin Andrews of Klutch Sports told The U.S. Sun.
The 7-foot center was joined by fellow free agents DJ Wilson, Thon Maker, Cory Joseph, Austin Rivers, Brandon Boston Jr., Talen Horton-Tucker, Juan Toscano-Alexander, and two-time NBA All-Defensive guard Eric Bledsoe.
They showcased their skills in front of dozens of NBA team representatives from across the league.
Koloko is making progress in his efforts toward an NBA comeback.
Koloko’s doctors have medically cleared him to return to basketball, per Andrews.
However, he is yet to receive clearance from the league after being referred to the NBA’s Fitness-to-Play panel.
The ex-Arizona standout’s paperwork has been submitted so the three-person panel can review his condition and make a determination on his status, Andrews said.
The panel consists of one physician appointed by the NBA, another chosen by the Players Association (NBPA), and a third selected by agreement of the first two physicians.
If the clearance determination is made, Koloko will have to sign “an informed consent and assumption of risk agreement in the form agreed upon by the parties before he is able to play or practice in the NBA,” per the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Koloko was selected by the Raptors with the 33rd overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft.
The center averaged 3.1 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks over 58 appearances – including 19 starts – in his rookie season.
He missed the first half of the 2023-24 season with what Toronto called a “respiratory issue.”
The Raptors then waived Koloko in mid-January, opening up a roster spot to complete Pascal Siakam’s trade to the Indiana Pacers.
Two days later, the league sent a memo to teams, informing them of his Fitness-to-Play referral.
Highest contracts in NBA history
- Jayson Tatum, Celtics – 5 years, $314 million
- Jaylen Brown, Celtics – 5 years, $285.4 million
- Nikola Jokic, Nuggets – 5 years, $276.1 million
- Bradley Beal, Suns – 5 years, $251 million (signed with Washington)
- Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves – 5 years, $244.6 million
Tyrese Haliburton, Pacers – 5 years, $244.6 million
Per Spotrac
“His medical status is now in the hands of the NBA and I can’t comment on it,” Raptors president Masai Ujiri said of the decision to waive Koloko at the time.
“But that’s a very tough one for us because [Koloko was] somebody we really believed in, someone that I know has incredible talent, and we saw as a future on this team.”
Ujiri added: “It’s really unfortunate for us, because this is a player that we felt was really a big part of our future and someone that’s part of the programs we’ve built in Africa, and what we believe is now a true pipeline of how we get future players in the NBA.”
The Raptors first scouted Koloko at the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders camp in South Africa in 2017, per The Athletic, an event Ujiri co-directed.
Meanwhile, five-time All-Star John Wall – who’s been a free agent since February 2023 and is also represented by Klutch Sports – attended Friday’s summer league games.
However, he was not part of Saturday’s private workout, The U.S. Sun understands.