Diving into the Raptors’ newest acquisition, Mo Bamba
The newest member of the Toronto Raptors, Mo Bamba, was signed to the squad last night as the 27-year-old centre will look to fill a big area of need for the undersized Toronto Raptors.
Our story starts back in 2018, when Bamba headed into the NBA Draft after a successful one-and-done college career at Texas, where he averaged 12.9 points, on 60.3 percent shooting from the field (and a sprinkle of 3-point shooting at 28 percent), 10.4 rebounds, and an astonishing 3.7 blocks per game. The key was the blocks per game, as it had NBA scouts salivating over his 7-foot height, and a crazy 7-foot-10 inches wingspan had people dreaming of Bamba becoming an elite rim protector who can also space the floor. The Orlando Magic were the team to pull the trigger on Bamba, selecting him with their sixth overall pick. Hopes were high.
His rookie season didn’t go to plan, as Bamba only averaged 16.3 minutes per game behind a good big man of Nikola Vucevic in an injury-riddled season where he saw the court 43 times. He finished his rookie campaign, averaging 6.2 points, 5 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Even when he was healthy, he never found his niche on the team. His sophomore season was even worse, as Bamba’s minutes dropped to 14.2 minutes per game, behind Nikola Vucevic yet again, which led to his points and rebounds dropping, but his rim protection still stayed solid with 1.4 blocks per game. In the 2020-21 season, Bamba’s minutes went back up to 15.8 minutes, his points (8) and rebounds (5.8) averages went back up after a disappointing start to his career. There were positives signs, though, that he would soon have his opportunity.
That season marked the start of the Orlando Magic rebuild as long-time members Aaron Gordon and Nikola Vucevic were traded from the franchise in order to acquire prospects and draft capital. You would think that would open the door for Bamba to finally become the starting centre for the Magic, but as Vucevic went out the door, another centre came in from Chicago with Wendell Carter Jr. Finally, in the 2021-22 season, Orlando decided to go with a dual big lineup consisting of Carter Jr. and Bamba. He finally found his role. And it went okay!
He had career highs in a ton of categories, including games played (71) and started (69), minutes (25.7), points (10.6), rebounds (8.1), assists (1.2), steals (0.5), and finally blocks per game at 1.7. But his inconsistency found him on the outside of the team’s plans. There were questions about his motor. The following season, Orlando elected to bring Bamba off the bench the majority of the time again, as across 40 games, he was only in the starting five six times, which saw his numbers dip across all categories again, and finally, Orlando decided to give up on their lottery pick and shipped him off to Los Angeles in an uneventful four team trade that featured the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets.
He never found another great home. (Until now?)
After an unsuccessful nine-game stint with the Lakers, where he saw a career low of 9.8 minutes per game across 9 games, Bamba once again found himself on the move as his next destination was the Philadelphia 76ers after agreeing to a one-year deal during free agency. It was another unsuccessful stint for the former lottery pick; however, Bamba did play in 57 games (one of three seasons where he appeared in more than 50 games) during the 2023-24 season behind Joel Embiid. He found himself another one-year deal with the Los Angeles Clippers, signing another one-year deal in free agency, but he saw only 28 games of action and was later traded to the Utah Jazz, where he was waived before even suiting up in an official game for his new trade destination. The New Orleans Pelicans decided to take a look at Mo Bamba, bringing him in for a 10-day contract as he featured in four games for them, but another unsuccessful stop for Bamba, who was having trouble finding a new home after serving as an Orlando Magic for four and a half seasons.
He never solved any of the questions in his game that kept him on the outside looking in as a member of the Magic.
To most, Mo Bamba is probably labelled as a bust due to how high a pick he was when he first entered the league, but one thing Bamba was able to do consistently was protect the rim, no matter which team he was on. He averages 1.3 blocks and 5.4 rebounds while only averaging 16.8 minutes per game in his career. The Toronto Raptors are in desperate need of a centre who can protect the paint, as their two current healthy “centres,” Sandro Mamukelashvili and Jonathan Mogbo, are both listed at 6-foot-9-inches and can’t provide the same rim protection as a lanky Bamba and his monstrous wingspan. He has also improved as a shooter from his college days, as he now averages 35.6 percent from beyond the arc across his seven-year career. Viewers in the G League complemented the improvement to his consistency, but it’s easier to be consistent in that league than the NBA. We’ll see.
Bamba’s contract with the Raptors is listed as a one-year deal, but it’s more complicated than that.
He’s got 13 days, which will feature six Raptors games to prove his worth and stick around. It looks like he will be available tonight for a matchup none other than the team that took the leap of faith on him, the Orlando Magic.
Bamba brings size, and he brings shooting that Poeltl can’t provide. Toronto is known as a solid developmental team, and perhaps this is the home that Mo Bamba has been looking for his whole career.
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