Arthur Kaluma
{{short description|Ugandan-American basketball player}}
{{Infobox basketball biography
| name = Arthur Kaluma
| image =
| caption =
| number = 6
| position = Power forward / small forward
| height_ft = 6
| height_in = 7
| weight_lbs = 225
| league = Southeastern Conference
| team = Texas Longhorns
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|2002|3|1}}
| birth_place = Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
| nationality = Ugandan / American
| high_school = * Universal Academy
(Irving, Texas)
- Dream City Christian
(Glendale, Arizona)
| college = * Creighton (2021–2023)
- Kansas State (2023–2024)
- Texas (2024–present)
| highlights = * Big East All-Freshman team (2022)
}}
Arthur Kaluma (born March 1, 2002) is a Ugandan-American college basketball player for the Texas Longhorns. He previously played for the Kansas State Wildcats and the Creighton Bluejays.
Early life
Kaluma grew up in Irving, Texas and initially attended Universal Academy.{{cite web|url=https://arizonastate.rivals.com/news/four-star-power-forward-arthur-kaluma-enjoys-the-familiarity-with-asu|title=Four-star power forward Arthur Kaluma enjoys the familiarity with ASU|first=Jordan|last=Kaye|website=Rivals.com|date=July 9, 2020|access-date=November 1, 2022}} He transferred to Dream City Christian School in Glendale, Arizona prior to his junior year.{{cite web|url=https://www.azcentral.com/story/sports/high-school/2019/07/17/4-star-2021-recruit-arthur-kaluma-announces-dream-city-commitment/1760354001/|title=4-star 2021 recruit Arthur Kaluma announces Dream City commitment|work=The Arizona Republic|date=July 17, 2019|access-date=October 28, 2022}} Kaluma was rated a four-star recruit and initially signed to play for UNLV, but was released from his National Letter of Intent following the departure of head coach T. J. Otzelberger.{{cite web|url=https://lasvegassun.com/news/2021/apr/27/unlv-basketball-loses-top-recruit-arthur-kaluma/|title=UNLV basketball loses top recruit Arthur Kaluma|work=Las Vegas Sun|date=April 27, 2021|access-date=November 1, 2022}} He ultimately committed to playing college basketball for Creighton over offers from Arizona, Western Kentucky, and Syracuse.{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/31456903/four-star-recruit-arthur-kaluma-arizona-commits-creighton-blue-jays|title=Four-star recruit Arthur Kaluma of Arizona commits to Creighton Blue Jays|first=Jonathan|last=Givony|website=ESPN.com|date=May 16, 2021|access-date=November 1, 2022}}
College career
Kaluma was named a starter entering his freshman season at Creighton. He finished the season averaging 10.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.{{cite web|url=https://omaha.com/sports/college/creighton/is-arthur-kaluma-creightons-next-nba-draft-pick/article_aaa26a8c-f604-11ec-b7f1-df0cacc235ca.html|title=Is Arthur Kaluma Creighton's next NBA draft pick?|work=Omaha World-Herald|date=July 2, 2022|access-date=October 28, 2022}} Kaluma entered his sophomore season on the watch list for the Karl Malone Award.{{cite web|url=https://www.kmaland.com/sports/creightons-kaluma-iowas-murray-on-karl-malone-award-watch-list/article_f62b9e56-563a-11ed-b2a4-aba1c61f13f6.html|title=Creighton's Kaluma, Iowa's Murray on Karl Malone Award Watch List|first=Derek|last=Martin|website=KMALand.com|date=October 27, 2022|access-date=November 1, 2022}} He finished the season averaging 11.8 points, six rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.{{cite web|url=https://www.si.com/college/gonzaga/basketball/creightons-arthur-kaluma-an-intriguing-option-for-gonzaga-in-transfer-portal|title=Creighton's Arthur Kaluma an intriguing option for Gonzaga in transfer portal|first=Henry|last=Krueger|website=SI.com|date=May 11, 2023|access-date=June 22, 2023}} After the season, Kaluma declared for the 2023 NBA draft while maintaining his eligibility.{{cite web|url=https://omaha.com/sports/college/creighton/creightons-arthur-kaluma-declares-for-nba-draft/article_26b7f780-d89b-11ed-8a88-3b5c63063bc0.html|title=Creighton's Arthur Kaluma declares for NBA draft|work=Omaha World-Herald|date=April 23, 2023|access-date=June 22, 2023}} He later also entered the NCAA transfer portal and eventually withdrew his name from the draft.{{cite web|url=https://tucson.com/sports/arizonawildcats/basketball/pascoe/former-arizona-recruiting-target-arthur-kaluma-of-creighton-to-enter-transfer-portal/article_6d0a355e-ef89-11ed-b6a3-33f6800c9a03.html|title=Former Arizona recruiting target Arthur Kaluma of Creighton to enter transfer portal|work=Arizona Daily Star|date=May 10, 2023|access-date=June 22, 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/37768813/sources-arthur-kaluma-exits-nba-draft-weighs-transfer-options|title=Sources: Arthur Kaluma exits NBA draft, weighs transfer options|first=Jeff|last=Borzello|website=ESPN.com|date=May 31, 2023|access-date=June 22, 2023}}
Kaluma ultimately transferred to Kansas State.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/arthur-kaluma-commits-to-kansas-state-ex-creighton-star-gives-wildcats-another-huge-transfer/|title=Arthur Kaluma commits to Kansas State: Ex-Creighton star gives Wildcats another huge transfer|first=Kyle|last=Boone|website=CBS Sports|date=June 11, 2023|access-date=June 22, 2023}} At Kansas State, Kaluma averaged 14.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game in 34.5 minutes a game. At the end of the season, Kaluma transferred to Texas.
At Texas, Kaluma averaged 12.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists per game in 30.0 minutes a game.
National team career
Kaluma became an Ugandan citizen in 2020. He played for the Uganda men's national basketball team in AfroBasket 2021.{{cite web|url=https://www.monitor.co.ug/uganda/sports/basketball/kaluma-announces-arrival-by-sending-uganda-to-afrobasket-championship-3466962|title=Kaluma announces arrival by sending Uganda to Afrobasket championship|first=Emanzi|last=Ndyamuhaki|work=Daily Monitor|date=July 9, 2021|access-date=November 1, 2022}}{{cite web|url=https://omaha.com/sports/college/creighton/creightons-arthur-kaluma-gets-kudos-from-nba-coach-for-performance-with-uganda/article_8f07991c-0a75-11ec-8e8d-5be4a2f504dd.html|title=Creighton's Arthur Kaluma gets kudos from NBA coach for performance with Uganda|work=Omaha World-Herald|date=August 31, 2021|access-date=October 28, 2022}} Kaluma also joined the team to play in 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers.{{cite web|url=https://www.fiba.basketball/afrobasket/2021/news/ugandan-brothers-making-waves-at-afrobasket-2021-under-watchful-eye-of-mother-saira-ariko|title=Ugandan brothers making waves at AfroBasket 2021 under watchful eye of mother Saira Ariko|website=FIBA.basketball|date=August 27, 2022|access-date=November 1, 2022}}
Career statistics
{{NBA player statistics legend}}
=College=
{{NBA player statistics start}}
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2021–22
| style="text-align:left;"| Creighton
| 31 || 30 || 26.8 || .444 || .265 || .671 || 5.4 || 1.3 || 0.6 || 0.6 || 10.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2022–23
| style="text-align:left;"| Creighton
| 37 || 37 || 29.4 || .423 || .311 || .736 || 6.0 || 1.6 || 0.5 || 0.6 || 11.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2023–24
| style="text-align:left;"| K-State
| 33 || 32 || 34.5 || .427 || .345 || .747 || 7.0 || 2.0 || 0.8 || 0.5 || 14.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| 2024–25
| style="text-align:left;"| Texas
| 33 || 32 || 29.3 || .462 || .359 || .784 || 7.5 || 1.8 || 0.9 || 0.9 || 12.3
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career
| 134 || 131 || 30.0 || .438 || .321 || .742 || 6.5 || 1.7 || 0.7 || 0.6 || 12.2
{{S-end}}
Personal life
Kaluma's brother, Adam Seiko, played college basketball at San Diego State. The brothers played each other in the Elite Eight of the 2023 NCAA tournament.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/26/sports/ncaabasketball/creighton-san-diego-state-brothers.html|title=Brothers Renew a Rivalry When Creighton Plays San Diego State|work=The New York Times|date=March 26, 2023|access-date=March 28, 2023}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://texaslonghorns.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/arthur-kaluma/14074 Texas Longhorns bio]
- [https://www.kstatesports.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/arthur-kaluma/11226 Kansas State Wildcats bio]
- [https://gocreighton.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/arthur-kaluma/7458 Creighton Bluejays bio]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaluma, Arthur}}
Category:21st-century American sportsmen
Category:American men's basketball players
Category:Basketball players from Boston
Category:Creighton Bluejays men's basketball players