Masai Ujiri Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Atlantic Notes: Siakam, Raptors, LeVert, Sixers

September 15th, 2020 at 11:10am CST by Luke Adams

The announcement of this season’s All-NBA teams will be important for the Raptors, according to Blake Murphy of The Athletic, who notes that the value of Pascal Siakam‘s rookie scale extension would increase from 25% of next season’s cap to 28% if Siakam is named to the All-NBA Second Team.

Even if Anthony Davis is considered a center and Luka Doncic is listed as a guard, making the Second Team might be a tall task for Siakam, as the Raptors forward figures to be behind LeBron James, Giannis Antetokonmpo, Kawhi Leonard, and Jayson Tatum on many ballots.

While the savings for the Raptors on a 25% max instead of 28% for Siakam wouldn’t be massive, the club will likely welcome any extra cap flexibility it can get as it looks to re-sign Fred VanVleet and preserve cap room for 2021.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Steven Loung of Sportsnet.ca examines five pressing offseason questions facing the Raptors, including which of their veteran free agents to re-sign and what OG Anunoby‘s value on a rookie scale extension would be. Meanwhile, Eric Koreen of The Athletic contends that a new contract extension for president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri, whose current deal expires in 2021, would be the best move Toronto could make this offseason. The team extended head coach Nick Nurse earlier today.
Nets forward Kevin Durant isn’t convinced the club needs to trade for a third star this offseason, expressing a belief that Caris LeVert is capable of being that star. “I think Caris is that perfect guy for us — any given night he can lead us in scoring or lead us in assists or he can control the offense or we can go to him in the post in a matchup,” Durant said during an appearance on the Old Man & The Three podcast (hat tip to Ian Begley of SNY.tv). “I feel like he has the tools to do everything on the basketball court. On our team, we play unselfishly, and we’ve got guys that can play off the basketball so on any given night anybody can be the star.”
Rich Hofmann of The Athletic takes a closer look at Mike D’Antoni, exploring whether the former Houston head coach would be a good fit on the Sixers‘ bench.

Atlantic Notes: Harris, Crawford, Ujiri, Sixers, Celtics

August 20th, 2020 at 3:57pm CST by Luke Adams

The Nets will be without sharpshooter Joe Harris and veteran scorer Jamal Crawford for Game 3 and Game 4 of their series against Toronto, head coach Jacque Vaughn confirmed today. Crawford continues to be hampered by a hamstring strain, while Harris left the NBA’s campus on Wednesday.

According to Marc Berman of The New York Post (Twitter link), teammate Tyler Johnson said today that Harris’ absence is related to an emergency family matter. A source close to Harris tells Brian Lewis of The New York Post (Twitter link) that the situation is “day-to-day,” with the 28-year-old’s return date and quarantine period still up in the air. If the Nets can’t pick up a win over Toronto, Harris’ season will be over and he’ll be headed to unrestricted free agency this fall.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Following the release of new footage from last June’s altercation with a security guard at Oracle Arena, Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri said in a statement that the video “sadly demonstrates how horribly I was treated by a law enforcement officer” as Toronto won its first NBA championship. As we noted on Wednesday, Ujiri has filed a countersuit in the matter.
In the wake of a dispiriting Game 2 loss to Boston, the Sixers‘ season is on the brink and the team’s disappointment is rising, writes Brian Windhorst of ESPN. Kyle Neubeck of PhillyVoice.com covers similar ground, suggesting that the post-“Process” 76ers almost look like they need to be blown up.
Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston explores how Al Horford‘s departure a year ago created a murky future for the Celtics, and how Kemba Walker‘s arrival brightened that future.
Celtics guard Marcus Smart will be under the microscope with Gordon Hayward sidelined, according to Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe.

And-Ones: Ujiri, COVID-19 Testing, Injury Policy, P. Gasol

August 19th, 2020 at 4:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

Raptors president Masai Ujiri has filed a countersuit in connection with an incident at Oracle Arena last year on the night his team won the NBA title, writes Laura Armstrong of The Toronto Star. The 108-page claim, filed Tuesday in an Oakland court, relates to an altercation with security guard Alan Strickland, who tried to stop Ujiri from going onto the court to celebrate with the Raptors.

The suit includes a body-cam video allegedly showing that Ujiri wasn’t the aggressor in the dispute. Ujiri can be seen trying to pull out his team credentials before Strickland grabs him by the jacket and pushes him backward, according to Armstrong.

“After being shoved and cursed at, Mr. Ujiri did not respond aggressively toward Mr. Strickland,” the lawsuit states. “… Rather than trying to communicate with Mr. Ujiri, Mr. Strickland chose to dismiss Mr. Ujiri’s claim that he was the Raptors’ president and ignore the all-access credential Mr. Ujiri was trying to show him. Mr. Strickland then forcefully shoved Mr. Ujiri a second time.”

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

The NBA’s “bubble environment” at the Disney World complex continues to be a success. The league announced today that the latest round of testing produced no positive results among the 341 players tested (Twitter link).
The league is changing its policy on reporting injuries, tweets Shams Charania of The Athletic. Teams have been told they must be specific about reasons why players are sidelined rather than using general terms such as conditioning, reconditioning, soreness and fatigue. “If a player has been diagnosed with a fracture of any type, the team’s public injury report must disclose the injury even if the player is certain to play in the team’s next game,” the memo states.
If Pau Gasol is going to make a comeback next season, it won’t be with Barcelona, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. Team president Josep Maria Bartomeu said his franchise can’t afford Gasol. “He is a person who has helped us a lot, he is an ambassador for Barcelona and represents us in the U.S.,” Bartomeu said. “He is an NBA star, and Barcelona would hardly pay what he asks.” There was speculation of a deal in July, but that later fell through.
Stanton Kidd, who briefly played for the Jazz this season, has signed with Ormanspor in Turkey, Carchia writes in a separate story. The small forward started the season with Utah, but was waived in November after appearing in four games.

Raptors Notes: Nurse, Draft, Campus, Restart

July 23rd, 2020 at 7:33pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Raptors general manager Bobby Webster has lauded 2019/20 Coach Of The Year candidate Nick Nurse without expressly defining a timeline for Nurse’s potential contract extension.

“Nick obviously has done an incredible job for us and those (types) of conversations are always top of mind for us,” Webster said, per Michael Grange of Rogers Sportsnet (Twitter link).

Nurse inked a three-year, $10MM deal with the Raptors in 2018 that will keep him on the sidelines through the 2020/21 NBA season. During his first year as head coach, the Raptors won the 2019 NBA Finals. This season, the 46-18 Raptors are the No. 2 seed in the East and the team had two 2020 All-Star representatives in Pascal Siakam and Kyle Lowry, despite having lost Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard in 2019 free agency.

“Obviously, (the) timeline’s a little different this year,” Webster noted when asked about a potential extension for Nurse (Twitter link via Blake Murphy of The Athletic).

There’s more out of Toronto:

Webster indicated today that the team’s front office has held conversations with about 50 or 60 potential 2020 draft picks thus far, per Blake Murphy of The Athletic (Twitter link). How the Raptors appraise those prospects remains relatively up in the air and contingent on COVID-19 numbers and league guidance as to whether or not individual player workouts or a draft combine will be permitted this season.
The Raptors are among the few teams present for the NBA’s summer restart at the Walt Disney World Resort whose traveling team includes both of their top front office executives, president Masai Ujiri and Webster, per Michael Grange of Rogers Sportsnet. “I think you guys know how we operate, and having both of us here is good to take care of things here on the ground,” Webster noted on a conference call with reporters today.
The Raptors are eagerly anticipating their first return to NBA action tomorrow, in a scrimmage game against the Rockets, according to Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports. “It’s huge that we get to play basketball again and I’m excited,” Toronto guard Patrick McCaw said. “It’s a different type of atmosphere, no fans and things like that. The focus is just going to be on us, and just basketball.”

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Nets, Dolan

June 11th, 2020 at 9:10pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The reigning NBA champion Raptors are riding high during 2019/20, boasting the second-strongest record (46-18) in the East. Team president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri will have a bevy of roster personnel choices to make during the 2020 offseason — one big one is whom to draft.

There are several intriguing switchable wing options that Toronto should consider with their first-round pick (currently projected to be No. 28) in the 2020 draft, per Blake Murphy of The Athletic. Arizona’s Josh Green, TCU’s Desmond Bane of TCU, Washington’s Jaden McDaniels, Colorado’s Tyler Bey, UCLA’s Chris Smith, and Barcelona forward Leandro Bolmaro are all viable candidates who may still be available when the Raptors are on the board.

There’s more from out of the Atlantic Division:

With All-Stars Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant officially declaring themselves done for the rest of the 2019/20 season, the Nets look to have at least one roster spot left to fill when play resumes in Orlando, per Alex Schiffer of The Athletic. Guards Justin Anderson, Henry Ellenson, Devin Cannady and veteran Iman Shumpert are among the leading prospects worth a look.
The muted response of Knicks owner James Dolan‘s internal memo addressing the George Floyd protests sweeping the nation did little to help the franchise’s reputation amongst NBA players, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst noted on First Take on Wednesday (video link).
As the Raptors prepare to defend their title in Orlando, Blake Murphy of The Athletic addresses questions related to the team’s rest-of-season roster and rotation depth, plus possible offseason additions.

Eastern Notes: Pistons, Valentine, Ujiri, Wizards

May 10th, 2020 at 5:58pm CST by JD Shaw

The Pistons remain in limbo as some teams around the NBA start reopening their practice facilities, Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press writes.

The Cavaliers and Trail Blazers formally opened their facilities on Friday under strict restrictions and guidelines from the NBA, with teams such as the Nuggets, Kings, and Hawks intending on doing the same next week. Detroit is likely multiple weeks away from opening its own facility, the Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center, Sankofa notes.

“There’s a set of guidelines, we’ll follow them to the T and we’ll be very cautious for both the player and the staff,” Pistons senior advisor Ed Stefanski said. “But … it’ll be a slow process. We’re waiting for the state of Michigan to allow us. We’re not doing anything until then.”

Detroit has mostly relied on virtual workouts during the hiatus, including using features such as Zoom, joining other teams in doing whatever they can over break. It’s likely the team will continue to use these approaches as time progresses this month.

“It’s not perfect from a basketball/cardio stance, but we’re not in perfect times,” Stefanski admitted. “We understand that the players are just getting their strength workout and some cardio, even if it’s outside on a track and things like that. That’s what we’re trying to do right now. We’re not encouraging them to go into gyms and things like that that are not regulated by NBA people.”

There’s more out of the Eastern Conference tonight:

Eric Woodyard of ESPN explores how Bulls forward Denzel Valentine wound up wearing No. 45 from the day he was drafted by Chicago in 2016. Bulls legend Michael Jordan wore No. 45 for 22 games in 1995, causing many in Valentine’s circle to wonder whether he’d be able to don the number with Chicago.
Blake Murphy of The Athletic examines the draft history of Raptors president Masai Ujiri, who’s widely considered to be one of the top executives in the league. Ujiri was responsible for drafting Pascal Siakam in 2016 and OG Anunoby in 2017, along with signing Fred VanVleet as an undrafted free agent in 2016.
Precious Achiuwa would fill some important needs for the Wizards if the team chooses to draft him, Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington contends. Achiuwa, who turns 21 in September, is a 6-foot-9 forward who averaged 15.8 points per game with Memphis last season.

And-Ones: Ujiri, DeRozan, Tomjanovich, Bates

April 15th, 2020 at 2:57pm CST by Luke Adams

While he’s on good terms now with former Raptors head coach Dwane Casey after firing him in 2018, Toronto’s president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri admitted to TNT’s Ernie Johnson this week that he hasn’t been able to mend fences in the same way with DeMar DeRozan. Ujiri shipped the longtime Raptors shooting guard to San Antonio in a 2018 blockbuster that sent Kawhi Leonard to Toronto.

“With Casey, it has gotten so much better now with his family and him. With DeMar there is still plenty of work to be done,” Ujiri said, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN. “But, by the grace of God, it will all get better. We have to continue to make these decisions that are tough. But that’s the business of basketball, and the position that we are in.”

While recognizing that the NBA is a business, Ujiri said that making significant changes to a coaching staff or roster isn’t easy, especially when it means parting ways with someone he has gotten close to. “You feel it in your heart,” Ujiri said, per Bontemps.

“I always say that the two hardest things in our world, in our business, is trading a player and then when a player leaves, if a player leaves in free agency,” Ujiri said. “And it’s hard on both sides. When a player is traded, it is hard on the player side, and when a player leaves, like us (with Leonard last summer), it is hard on that side. I’ve experienced all of it, from wonderful people.”

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

In a conversation with Michael Lee of The Athletic, former Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich revisited some of the highlights – and lowlights – of his career and expressed gratitude at being elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame earlier this month. “I had been through the phone calls several times and got the, ‘Sorry, not this year.’ And it was so good to hear them say, ‘Rudy, you’re in,'” Tomjanovich said. “Still getting use to it. Still bouncing on a cloud. I feel really good about it.”
After Emoni Bates became the first high-school sophomore to win the Gatorade National Player of the Year, Jared Weiss of The Athletic explores the 16-year-old phenom’s game and explains why NBA scouts are excited for his growth trajectory.
In the second installment of his breakdown of 2020’s free agent class for wings, Danny Leroux of The Athletic singles out Heat swingman Derrick Jones Jr. as one of the more intriguing options who will be available, since it’s rare for an established rotation player to reach unrestricted free agency at such a young age — Jones turned 23 in February.

Atlantic Notes: Ujiri, Brand, Knicks, Thybulle

April 7th, 2020 at 9:29am CST by Luke Adams

After being sued by Oracle Arena security guard Alan Strickland, who claimed he was assaulted at the end of Game 6 of the NBA Finals last June, Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri has claimed in his legal response that he only shoved Strickland in the chest after being shoved by the security guard multiple times while attempting to get to the court.

Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic has the full story and the details on Ujiri’s response to Strickland’s lawsuit, in which he claimed that the Raptors’ executive “attacked” him and “hit him in the face and chest with both fists.” As Kaplan details, Ujiri also disputed Strickland’s claim that he wasn’t showing the proper credentials when he attempted to reach the court to celebrate his team’s title.

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

Rumors that the Knicks have interest in Elton Brand are a win-win for the Sixers‘ general manager, according to Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer. As Pompey writes, if New York’s interest is legit and Philadelphia pushes to retain its GM, the situation could even result in a raise and/or a contract extension for Brand.
In a Q&A with Sam Amick of The Athletic, Sixers wing Matisse Thybulle discussed his workout regimen during the hiatus, his newfound TikTok stardom, and how he has tried to keep things in perspective as his rookie season has been derailed by COVID-19. “I think we have people who are more essential than basketball players who aren’t able to work right now, and I think at the end of the day getting that stuff is more important than a basketball season,” Thybulle said. “At this point, this is real life. This is not about entertaining. This is not about what’s on TV. It’s about making sure you’re healthy and making sure your family is healthy, and I think that takes precedence over anything else.”
In case you missed it, we took a closer look at the Celtics‘ 2020/21 cap situation on Monday in the second installment of our Salary Cap Preview series. The Nets will be up next.

Bulls To Seek Interviews With Karnisovas, Webster, Others

April 3rd, 2020 at 1:24pm CST by Luke Adams

1:24pm: Pacers GM Chad Buchanan will join Karnisovas and Webster on the Bulls’ list of first-wave interview targets, per K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune (via Twitter). Sources tell Darnell Mayberry and Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link) that Heat assistant GM Adam Simon will be part of that group as well.

According to Mayberry (Twitter link), the Bulls won’t pursue Ujiri or Thunder head of basketball operations Sam Presti and won’t go the player-agent route like New York and other teams have.

12:41pm: The Bulls have formally launched their search for a new top front office executive who will have full authority on basketball decisions, reports ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski. We had previously heard in a series of February reports that the team was laying the groundwork for front office changes.

Those February reports suggested that executive VP of basketball operations John Paxson would retain a “valuable seat at the table” amidst the front office upheaval and that general manager Gar Forman would have his responsibilities cut back.

Wojnarowski confirms that Paxson is expected to continue in an advisory role and says that the club will have more conversations with Forman about his future. Previous reports indicated Forman would likely be re-assigned to a scouting position.

According to Wojnarowski, Chicago plans to seek permission to interview Nuggets general manager Arturas Karnisovas and Raptors GM Bobby Webster, among others. The club’s goal is to complete its planned front office changes “well before” the NBA resumes play, per Woj, who hears that interviews will begin next week and will be conducted virtually rather than in person due to the coronavirus.

Neither Karnisovas nor Webster is the head of basketball operations for his respective team — Tim Connelly serves as Denver’s president of basketball operations, while Masai Ujiri holds that position in Toronto. However, the two GMs have risen through their respective organizations in recent years and have played important roles in building the Nuggets’ and Raptors’ talented rosters.

According to K.C. Johnson of NBC Sports Chicago, who identified Karnisovas and Webster as two possible targets for the Bulls in a March mailbag, Pacers GM Chad Buchanan, Heat assistant GM Adam Simon, Jazz GM Justin Zanik, and Clippers GM Michael Winger are among the other executives on Bulls president/COO Michael Reinsdorf‘s list of potential candidates (Twitter link).

Many of those executives are under contract beyond the 2019/20 season, but likely wouldn’t be held back by their respective teams if the Bulls’ job is viewed as a promotion from their current roles. Based on Woj’s description, it should be.

The timing of Chicago’s search is interesting. Ujiri spoke earlier this week about putting business like contract extensions for himself and Nick Nurse on hold during the NBA’s stoppage, and we heard on Thursday that the Knicks aren’t pursuing front office changes or a new head coach during the hiatus. Nets GM Sean Marks also said this week that his team isn’t moving forward with its head coach search at this time.

However, no official hiring or firing freeze has been instituted by the NBA, and the Bulls’ situation is a little different from that of those other teams — a new top front office executive would lead the team’s decisions in the draft and free agency, making that search a more pressing matter than a head coaching hire, lower-level front office changes, or extensions for current execs and coaches.

Atlantic Notes: Walker, Smart, Embiid, Raptors

April 1st, 2020 at 7:18pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kemba Walker‘s left knee is feeling better, but the Celtics guard won’t know how it’s going to respond to competition until he gets to test it against someone, writes A. Sherrod Blakely of NBC Sports Boston. Walker has gotten plenty of time to rest since the league shut down three weeks ago.

“The knee is doing well,” he said. “It’s difficult because I don’t have anyone around to give me treatments or anything like that. I have to do my own stuff, which I’m trying to do as much as possible; try to stay on top of things.”

Walker developed swelling in the knee during the All-Star break. He had it drained, then received a shot of Synvisc to ease the soreness and minimize swelling. He’s waiting out the hiatus like everyone else and hoping for a chance to try out the knee under game conditions.

There’s more from the Atlantic Division:

Now that Celtics guard Marcus Smart has recovered from the coronavirus, he will donate blood in hopes that it will help to find a treatment for COVID-19, according to ESPN. Three other players who tested positive for the virus also plan to make blood donations, but they haven’t been identified. The league office reached out to team doctors over the weekend to encourage players who tested positive to give blood samples to the National COVID-19 Convalescent Plasma Project.
Joel Embiid‘s response to a plan by Sixers majority owner Josh Harris to reduce some employees’ salaries while the league is shut down raises questions about his long-term future with the team, suggests Bob Ford of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Harris changed his mind about the pay cuts, but not before Embiid made a public offer to help everyone who would have been affected. Ford claims Embiid’s relationship with the organization has always been “fractious” and states that embarrassing the owner may lead to an eventual parting.
In a conference call with reporters, Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri said potential extensions for himself and coach Nick Nurse won’t be discussed while the league is on hiatus (Twitter link from Eric Koreen of The Athletic). The team is currently paused with no talk of extensions or contracts for anyone, adds Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports (Twitter link). “It’s not where our minds are at right now,” Ujiri said. “This is a crucial time for the world. Those things will come.”