Dolan targets Raps’ Ujiri to Phil opening
AW-PHIL NIGHTMARE ENDS!
If you can’t beat Masai Ujiri, try to hire him to fix this flaming mess.
After being fleeced by Ujiri twice in trades, James Dolan is targeting the Raptors GM to replace Phil Jackson, a source confirmed.
Dolan has admired Ujiri for quite some time, to the point where he vetoed a trade for Kyle Lowry in 2013 because he didn’t want to lose another deal to the affable GM. The Daily News reported over a year ago that Dolan had already tabbed Ujiri as a potential successor for Jackson.
Furthering the notion of the 46-yearold as a leading candidate, Dolan also revealed in a press release Wednesday that former Raptors executive Tim Leiweke will advise the Knicks moving forward as Steve Mills retains the GM gig “over the short term.” Leiweke hired Ujiri in Toronto, and, more importantly to Dolan, is business partners with Irving Azoff.
Azoff, an entertainment executive who represented Dolan’s favorite band, “The Eagles,” was instrumental in hiring Jackson in 2014.
Ujiri may also earn brownie points from Dolan for once serving as the enemy of the Nets, having famously shouted during a Raptors pep rally, “F—k Brooklyn.” He was fined $25,000 for the outburst in 2014.
Three years earlier, Ujiri had just gotten his first GM job in Denver when he took the farm from the Knicks in a swap for Carmelo Anthony. Dolan was directly involved in those negotiations, and the haul Ujiri landed was surprising considering the Nuggets didn’t hold much leverage. In 2013 after he relocated to Toronto, Ujiri somehow dealt grumpy bust Andrea Bargnani to the Knicks for a first-round pick and two secondrounders.
For Dolan, however, landing Ujiri isn’t as simple as throwing him money. He signed a five-year, $30 million extension with the Raptors in 2016, and Toronto can either deny the Knicks or demand compensation. Ujiri, who grew up in Nigeria, built a perennial division champ in Toronto but the team is at a crossroads with Lowry as a free agent. It may be time for a rebuild, but Toronto coach Dwane Casey suggested otherwise.
“I know Masai is happy in Toronto,” Casey said on SiriusXM NBA Radio. “He’s done an excellent job of leading us. I’m biased because I’m with Toronto, but I think we have one of the finest organizations and ownership groups. We have a team that’s ready to take the next step. We’re in a good situation so that would be my recruiting pitch to Masai if that’s about to happen.”