07.17
The Raptors have signed guard Roko Ukic, the club’s second-round draft pick (41st overall) in 2005, to a three-year contract.
The 6-foot-5, 210-pound Ukic played in Italy last season with Lottomatica Virtus Roma. He averaged career highs of 11.5 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals in 19 Euroleague contests. He shot 55% from the field and 82% from the free throw line.
Ukic is expected to back up Jose Calderon at the point guard position in Toronto.
Roko. Roko. ROKO.
He’s coming, three-year deal, the number I heard was $1.25 million in the first year.
It will be interesting to watch him tomorrow morning against Canada. But, remember, this is Canada he’s playing, not the Celtics. Or the Cavs. Or some, you know, good team.
“It might take more mining to come up with something unique, but Oklahoma City is a very unique place,” Fugleberg said. “Geography is important. It’s important that they try not to think of a name that’s necessarily going to be popular in the NBA but popular in their city.”
That’s precisely what the Toronto Raptors did, said Dan Rascher, president of Oakland, Calif.-based SportsEconomics, a sports economics, finance and marketing research firm.
The Raptors, who began as an expansion team in 1995, were named in 1994, one year after the release of the hit movie “Jurassic Park.”
“Dinosaurs were more popular 15 years ago,” Rascher said. “But you look down the road 10 or 20 years later and it’s not so exciting.”
i hated the raptors name from the get go, at least they changed the uniforms.
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Should’ve just gone with the Huskies. I liked Towers, personally.
Roko is a lot bigger than I thought he’d be. I was picturing a skinny Shaun Livingston the whole time, like a buck eighty, tops.
The unis are vastly improved – our initial ones were the worst in the history of the league IMO – but the name still makes me cringe. I’ve come to terms with it, but I’ll never like the name.
I was watching “classic” games on Raptors TV the other day and they had one on from the first season – I’d forgotten how much the whole “Raptors Experience” (for lack of a better term) was designed to cater to five year olds.
Have you seen the black ones? I saw it posted somewhere. They look pretty nice.
Agreed on the “Huskies.” Would have led to some cool throw-back opportunities, as well.
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