BROOKLYN

It was 10 years ago that the Toronto Raptors shocked the NBA community by selecting Rafael Araujo eighth overall in Manhattan.

On Thursday, in a different New York borough, a different, but highly respected Raptors front office again turned to Brazil, this time selecting an even bigger unknown, Bruno Caboclo.

With local point guard Tyler Ennis selected a couple of picks earlier, the Raptors opted for Caboclo, who did not work out for any teams, but received a promise from Raptors general manager Masai Ujiri according to ESPN. The Raptors did not believe he would fall to No. 37. He was taken over collegiate talent like UCLA’s Kyle Anderson, or Swiss big man Clint Capela, who had been widely connected to the team.

The 19-year-old is 6-foot-9, reportedly still growing and has a 7-foot-7 wingspan and could either be a small forward or a power forward.

Brazilian journalist Fabio Balassiano has been tracking Caboclo since he was 16 and said he is a shy teenager, from a very poor family, who is driven to succeed and loaded with talent.

Balassiano caught up with Caboclo over the phone after the Raptors selected him.

“I’m happy as hell, man,” Caboclo said, adding he did not know he was picked until he saw Balassiano’s Twitter account.

“How am I to believe? When they started calling here gave an ice on my stomach. I dunno, gave the goose bumps. I’m very happy, very excited,” he said.

“Was silent here, praying and hoping. It was all too fast for me ... I just practiced, practiced and dreamed.”

Another Brazilian journalist, Luis Araujo has also had his eye on Caboclo for some time and provided the Toronto Sun with a scouting report on the draft’s true international man of mystery (with apologies to Australia’s Dante Exum).

“I can tell you that he is very talented, but he still has a long way to go. He still has a lot to develop,” wrote Araujo in an e-mail.

“He is very athletic and has a great ability to make shots. He also can defend. But he wasn’t playing much time here in the Brazilian Lague — only 13 minutes per game. But the coach of his club had to deal with some critics about Caboclo’s (lack of) playing time.”

Balassiano said Caboclo was not sure when he would come to Toronto, “It’s too early to know what will be happening right now. If I’m gonna play for Toronto (right away),” Caboclo said. But the Raptors later said they expect him to suit up at Las Vegas Summer League.

He expects to meet soon with the Raptors but has, “no suit, no tie, I have nothing. Now, it is now difficult to think about things. Not with my family I got to tell you to be honest,” he told Balassiano.

According to Araujo, Caboclo was the best player in the under-23 Brazilian League tournament.

“He really is above other players with the same age,” he said.

“Despite his (lack of minutes in the Brazilian League), he had a lot of time in the South American Championship and he was just great. He showed a lot of ability to score.”

Araujo cautioned that Caboclo is quite shy, but is being heavily hyped in South America.

“I can tell you that he is the most promising player here in Brazil. But I also think it is very dangerous people calling him ‘The Brazilian Durant’. He is not right now and he probably never will be a player like K.D.”

Last November, Caboclo told Araujo: “I want to be the best player in the world. I want to be in the NBA and I also have the dream of playing in the Olympic Games.”

Continued Caboclo, “things are coming really fast to me, but I know that I will have to keep training very hard to find my space in the team.”

Araujo says Caboclo already is a very good shooter, with tremendous athleticism, who should also be a good defender by the time he gets to the NBA.

“It’s also important to have in mind that he is a player for the future. I would be very, very surprised if he gets there this year and finds a good space in Raptors rotation immediately,” Araujo said.

“I heard people remembering what happened to Giannis Antetokounmpo, who played in a 2nd division Greek team, in Milwaukee, but the Raptors are a playoff team right now.”

Ujiri made a bold choice. Time will tell if he will be rewarded, but it is clear Caboclo has a considerable ceiling.