JOHANNESBURG -- Toronto Raptors head coach Darko Rajakovic told ESPN that signing Angolan center Bruno Fernando from the Atlanta Hawks was a no-brainer, and that the team had been following Fernando 'for years'.
Fernando is currently in Johannesburg for Basketball Without Borders (BWB) Africa and confirmed his move to the Raptors in an interview with ESPN, having been waived by the Hawks last week.
"I just signed yesterday (Friday) for the Toronto Raptors," Fernando said. It is a non-guaranteed deal, meaning that he will report to camp and compete for a roster spot.
Rajaković, also in Joburg with BWB, told ESPN why he liked the deal: "I like that he plays really hard. I like that he wants to win; he is all about the team.
"He wants to help the team win in any way that he can. He is able to do multiple things on defense, to guard multiple positions. On offense, he's a great holder. I think he's a little bit underestimated as a passer.
"We'll see how he's going to fit into our system, but I think that he's a really good fit for us."
Rajaković confirmed that the Raptors had been monitoring Fernando for some time and when the opportunity to sign it opened up, they jumped at it.
He explained: "We just found out that he got released from Atlanta and we jumped on him right away. Obviously, we've been following him for years now and we know a lot about him. Just the opportunity to get to bring him on our team - we are really excited about that."
Fernando grew up playing for Primeiro de Agosto in Angola - one of the most basketball-mad countries in Africa - and became the first ever Angolan player drafted in the league in 2019, when he was selected 34th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers out of Maryland, where he played his college basketball from 2017-2019.
Fernando was immediately traded to the Atlanta Hawks and played there until 2021. After stints with the Boston Celtics and Houston Rockets, he returned to Atlanta last year and was subsequently waived in the off-season.
At BWB Africa, he is coaching at a camp led by Raptors president Masai Ujiri which brings the top teenage boys and girls in Africa together on an annual basis. The best talents at BWB Africa often go on to compete at BWB Global.
The camp has had many success stories in Africa - most notably Joel Embiid, who was at the 2011 BWB Africa camp in Johannesburg and went on to be the 2023 NBA MVP with the Philadelphia 76ers.
For Fernando, the most exciting aspect is mixing with the next wave of talent from his home country, which shares a border with South Africa.
"This is something I've always wanted to do. For a long time, I've been trying to be here. Being able to be around the kids and just share the experience with them and enjoy the country," he said.
"It's special to me - it's very important to be able to be a part of something that has such a huge impact on the continent.
"I was born and raised in Angola. I grew up at a local club, Primeiro de Agosto... I was able to learn my first steps in the basketball world back there.
"To be here... there's some kids from Angola that I'm going to be able to talk to and connect to in a bigger way than I probably could have had in years prior."