Italy's Abramo Canka Signs With UCLA Men's Basketball, Joins Team For 2022
The Bruins have brought in some reinforcements from overseas for this upcoming season.
Italian wing Abramo Canka signed with UCLA men's basketball on Wednesday, the team announced in a press release. The 20-year-old came up with amateur club Stella Azzurra Rome before joining Lokmotiv Kuban in Russian Superleague 1, where he averaged 10.9 points and 3.7 rebounds per game last season.
The Bruins have been connected to Canka for several weeks, with Eurohopes reporting on July 12 that he had committed to UCLA. 247Sports' Bruin Report Online reported soon after, however, that the staff was still hashing out the final details in getting Canka eligible for the college game and that it was far from a done deal.
Canka has evidently been cleared to play, though, and he will join the Bruins as a freshman this upcoming season.
"We are really excited to add Abramo to our program this season," said coach Mick Cronin in a statement released by the program. "Playing in Europe, Abramo is a versatile player who can shoot the ball, rebound and pass. At 6-foot-7, we like his size and his defensive ability, especially with his length and athleticism. He is excited to get to Los Angeles and join his UCLA teammates, and we look forward to getting him on the court soon."
The last time Canka had the spotlight was in July for the FIBA U20 European Championship in Montenegro, where fellow incoming Bruin Adem Bona also shined for Turkey. Canka suited up for Italy and averaged 9.4 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists in seven games while shooting 45.6 percent from the field.
The 6-foot-7 wing had previously made a name for himself at the 2018 FIBA U16 European Championships and the 2020 Adidas Next Generation Tournament in Munich, Germany. Several outlets had Canka pegged as a 2022 NBA Draft prospect, and others are projecting him to be selected in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Canka's arrival comes not long after Cronin added Ivo Simovic to his staff as an assistant coach. Simovic is Serbian, but spent some time coaching in Spain as well before becoming an international scout for the San Antonio Spurs.
Just since Simovic signed on, UCLA has been connected to a handful of international prospects and players whose parents came from overseas.
As it stands, UCLA now has six new freshman joining the team this season. Bona and fellow five-star McDonald's All-American Amari Bailey are the headliners, but four-star point guard Dylan Andrews and now Canka are signed on as well. Walk-on forwards Jack Seidler and Evan Manjikian will provide depth at the end of the bench as well, giving Cronin and the Bruins 14 players to work with.
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