Derozan interview on ESPN, Tues 10pm EST (TONIGHT!)

[Childs]

That's true, and I've been really harsh on Masai over the last two years over it.

It doesn't change the fact that derozan was compensated very generously for his work, and to make it sound like he sacrifices whatever to play here, and that he was doing us a favour of some sort is non sense.

His whole grip is he feels the team owes him for his contribution and he deserves to know Masai's plan before it materalizes, otherwise it's classified as disrespect. The bottom line is Masai didn't see it that way nor he needs to.

So he doesn't get owned to be told that he may be a trade piece? The guy attempts every summer to support the new guys in summer league and work with the young players every summer. Not every player has to do that. There are plenty of stars who just go on vacation and do jack. You spend 9 years with an organization, I think it's fair to at least know that there could be a chance to being traded.

By just giving me the say so of letting me know something's going on or it's a chance. That's all I wanted. That's all I wanted. I'm not saying, 'You don't have to trade me' or ... just let me know something is going on because I sacrificed everything. Just let me know. That's all I asked. Everybody know I'm the most low-maintenance person in the world. Just let me know, so I can prepare myself for whatever my next chapter is, and I didn't get that.

Based on this quote, all Masai had to say was "Hey you are our franchise player but there is a chance you could be traded." That's it.

As a professional athlete, i believe that the notion that you could be traded at any time should always be on the back of your mind (especially after years of playoff blunders) unless you have a no trade claus. It's silly to expect otherwise, then why does it fall upon the management to inform him when it's himself that doesn't grasp the nature of the business? The act of even saying "yea you might be traded" could be detrimental towards the unity and stability of the team, not to mention any leaked sources can be used as leverage by trade partners and what not. I am sure I don't need to explain why it's not advisable to let others know of your intention in a competitive environment.

This isn't just a random player who has just waltz through the Raptors roster revolving door. He spent 9 years in the organization and 5 years with Masai. You do expect some degree of a relationship being formed there and a mutual understanding between the 2.

[Lucky 24]

I don’t mind being a Heel lol. That’s the best

We aren't really a heel though. ESPN wants us to go away. They don't profit from Canada. Unless stealing our best sports broadcasters counts.

ESPN has a 20% ownership stake in Bell Media which owns TSN. That is the maximum percentage CRTC will allow them to own. So yes they do profit but on a much lower scale.

[WuTang_CMB]

Interview wasn't really bad

I think Demar was just hurt and that's why he posted that stuff on IG. It's understandable.

Masai clearly did nothing wrong here. His interview lines up with what Demar is saying.

Masai is not going to tell Demar updates on trades and the progression of them. Not the way it works.

Masai said they were 4th on the ranks at the time of SL ... then after talks heated up. No reason to call Demar to tell him until a deal is actually done.

[Chandan]

This isn't just a random player who has just waltz through the Raptors roster revolving door. He spent 9 years in the organization and 5 years with Masai. You do expect some degree of a relationship being formed there and a mutual understanding between the 2.

Just because you have been a long time loyal employee, that doesn't mean you are privy to upper management decisions which could impact business performance. Even if there's a relationship, masai doesn't only have derozan to answer to, He has a moral obligation to produce wins now or the future for the company/investors he works for. If letting Derozan know he's a trade potential at the time could impact the number of wins the follow season, it would be unprofessional of him to disclose it.

But that's all moot because he obviously doesn't feel he needed to inform derozan which is understandable.

[VancouverRaps]

I'm usually not a fence sitter, but I can understand both DeMar and Masai's actions/feelings here.

Masai knows Demar is an emotional guy, and if he told Demar "hey man, you might get traded" and then nothing materializes...then what? DeMar's gonna act like nothing happened and be cool? I honestly doubt it. Not saying DeMar would demand a trade, because he clearly loved it in Toronto, but you'd have to think his mindset would change a bit and Masai had to be worried about the fallout.

DeMar being frustrated after basically being spoken to as if he's apart of the team moving forward on multiple occasions this summer and then all of a sudden getting traded to San Antonio has to be a huge shock and pretty upsetting. I can understand his anger toward Masai.

And Haynes baited him big time in this interview, it was very one-sided. He asked some questions basically twice and just re-worded them, and then asked like 1 question about San Antonio and 1 about what DeMar will remember the most in his time in Toronto lmao. The other 8 questions were all just bait basically. DeMar even said that he still loves Toronto and the organization, city, country, ownership, etc. His only issue is seemingly with Masai, which again I can understand.


ESPN and Haynes can go **** themselves though. I know it's one of the slowest times of the year in sports, but what Ainge did to IT was way worse and Griffin with the Clippers was just as bad as DeMar/Masai, if not worse as well. Yet this move is getting just as much negativity as the IT one and more than the Griffin one. Haynes' came off like a TMZ reporter here, blatantly trying to use DeMar to get a controversial quote. Considering that DeMar is still clearly hurt and shook and that Haynes repeatedly tried to bait him, I thought DeMar handled this decently.

The LeBron quote DeMar gave reminded me about why I was 100% okay with Masai trying to upgrade on him. He views LeBron as this God-like figure who was impossible to defeat, which has been true for the Eastern conference. But I doubt the Pacers, Sixers and Celtics had that same mindset this year. Just a weak mentality to have.

I still respect DeMar and if I lived in Toronto, I'd buy tickets for his first game back and give him the ovation he deserves.

[WuTang_CMB]

ESPN will do anything to blow this story up.

Casey and Demar were big reasons why we have failed in the post season.

And when both were fired/traded, they couldn't stop bitc*ing to the media

And guess who decided to keep both of them? It's a 2 way street. The Raptors playoff failures are on GM as well as equally on the players, the coaches. These guys didn't put a gun to Masai's head and force him to give them their contracts. You know why also this story is getting blown out of proportion. It's freakin late July, all the major free agents have been signed and there is literally nothing to talk about. Media is all about sensationalism, what headline is going to get the most views and the most hashtags.

He gave them a chance and is correcting the failure of the post-season. Simple as that. There's no blame on Masai at all.

[Childs]

This isn't just a random player who has just waltz through the Raptors roster revolving door. He spent 9 years in the organization and 5 years with Masai. You do expect some degree of a relationship being formed there and a mutual understanding between the 2.

Just because you have been a long time loyal employee, that doesn't mean you are privy to upper management decisions which could impact business performance. Even if there's a relationship, masai doesn't only have derozan to answer to, He has a moral obligation to produce wins for the company/investors he works for. If letting Derozan know he's a trade potential at the time could impact the number of wins the follow season, it would be unprofessional of him to disclose it.

Where is his 9 year career, has Demar given an indication that he would be a locker room detriment or not work at all? This is all speculative at best.

[Childs]

ESPN will do anything to blow this story up.

Casey and Demar were big reasons why we have failed in the post season.

And when both were fired/traded, they couldn't stop bitc*ing to the media

And guess who decided to keep both of them? It's a 2 way street. The Raptors playoff failures are on GM as well as equally on the players, the coaches. These guys didn't put a gun to Masai's head and force him to give them their contracts. You know why also this story is getting blown out of proportion. It's freakin late July, all the major free agents have been signed and there is literally nothing to talk about. Media is all about sensationalism, what headline is going to get the most views and the most hashtags.

He gave them a chance and is correcting the failure of the post-season. Simple as that. There's no blame on Masai at all.

What are you talking about? Are you just blowing smoke up his ass? He gave the players and these coaches these contracts. It is up to him to evaluate the future and the talent to bring a championship to Toronto. That's the end goal right? He's a good GM but to say he's blameless is just shortsighted and foolish.

[Chandan]

This isn't just a random player who has just waltz through the Raptors roster revolving door. He spent 9 years in the organization and 5 years with Masai. You do expect some degree of a relationship being formed there and a mutual understanding between the 2.

Just because you have been a long time loyal employee, that doesn't mean you are privy to upper management decisions which could impact business performance. Even if there's a relationship, masai doesn't only have derozan to answer to, He has a moral obligation to produce wins for the company/investors he works for. If letting Derozan know he's a trade potential at the time could impact the number of wins the follow season, it would be unprofessional of him to disclose it.

Where is his 9 year career, has Demar given an indication that he would be a locker room detriment or not work at all? This is all speculative at best.

Perhaps the fact that he has openly stated he has depression, loves being in toronto, the notion of being traded away anytime would be too much to bear and ultimately could have an impact towards his on court play. Who knows. It's speculative.

The point is no good would have came out of telling him before any final decision was made, ONLY harm. Masai made the right call. His only blunder was expecting Derozan to be more adult about it when he should have wore kiddy gloves... I mean he's still wearing them now to be honest. He should have told him to suck it up and stop feeling so entitled.

I have a feeling Derozan was always going to have something to complain about after the trade went down. (especially with the US media baiting) If not this, then it would be another angle on why he's upset Masai didn't trust him with the franchise. He really does have a beta, victim mentality.

[nestea]

This interview should never have taken place. Doesn't look good on Demar. I couldnt see LeBron having this type of interview. DeMar is made of glass..

[WuTang_CMB]

And guess who decided to keep both of them? It's a 2 way street. The Raptors playoff failures are on GM as well as equally on the players, the coaches. These guys didn't put a gun to Masai's head and force him to give them their contracts. You know why also this story is getting blown out of proportion. It's freakin late July, all the major free agents have been signed and there is literally nothing to talk about. Media is all about sensationalism, what headline is going to get the most views and the most hashtags.

He gave them a chance and is correcting the failure of the post-season. Simple as that. There's no blame on Masai at all.

What are you talking about? Are you just blowing smoke up his ass? He gave the players and these coaches these contracts. It is up to him to evaluate the future and the talent to bring a championship to Toronto. That's the end goal right? He's a good GM but to say he's blameless is just shortsighted and foolish.

Wtf are you talking about.

Casey was extended because we had success. And so was Demar, and to keep the asset for something like this.

Now after 5 years it was time for change. The last two post-seasons were failures.

Get your head out of the sand

[mirrornick]

DD will do fine in SAS. Best of luck to him.

[Childs]

He gave them a chance and is correcting the failure of the post-season. Simple as that. There's no blame on Masai at all.

What are you talking about? Are you just blowing smoke up his ass? He gave the players and these coaches these contracts. It is up to him to evaluate the future and the talent to bring a championship to Toronto. That's the end goal right? He's a good GM but to say he's blameless is just shortsighted and foolish.

Wtf are you talking about.

Casey was extended because we had success. And so was Demar, and to keep the asset for something like this.

Now after 5 years it was time for change. The last two post-seasons were failures.

Get your head out of the sand

And those contracts to Norm, Ibaka, and Carroll and their lack of a contribution to the playoffs are not on Masai to evaluate talent to help further bring a championship to Toronto?

[Childs]

Just because you have been a long time loyal employee, that doesn't mean you are privy to upper management decisions which could impact business performance. Even if there's a relationship, masai doesn't only have derozan to answer to, He has a moral obligation to produce wins for the company/investors he works for. If letting Derozan know he's a trade potential at the time could impact the number of wins the follow season, it would be unprofessional of him to disclose it.

Where is his 9 year career, has Demar given an indication that he would be a locker room detriment or not work at all? This is all speculative at best.

Perhaps the fact that he has openly stated he has depression, loves being in toronto, the notion of being traded away anytime would be too much to bear and ultimately could have an impact towards his on court play. Who knows. It's speculative.

The point is no good would have came out of telling him before any final decision was made, ONLY harm. Masai made the right call. His only blunder was expecting Derozan to be more adult about it when he should have wore kiddy gloves... I mean he's still wearing them now to be honest. He should have told him to suck it up and stop feeling so entitled.

I have a feeling Derozan was always going to have something to complain about after the trade went down. (especially with the US media baiting) If not this, then it would be another angle on why he's upset Masai didn't trust him with the franchise. He really does have a beta, victim mentality.

Dude, this is all speculation at best. Masai did the right thing, but he could of done it better. He even admitted it.

[Baarignani]

Which other star player has been traded without telling him beforehand? Completely unprecedented behaviour by Masai. He didn't even ask Demar where he would like to live. Demar will now be forced to live in Mexico, Texas for three years instead of Los Angeles where he could have gone in free agency. I guess Masai is not as nice as he seems.

[WuTang_CMB]

What are you talking about? Are you just blowing smoke up his ass? He gave the players and these coaches these contracts. It is up to him to evaluate the future and the talent to bring a championship to Toronto. That's the end goal right? He's a good GM but to say he's blameless is just shortsighted and foolish.

Wtf are you talking about.

Casey was extended because we had success. And so was Demar, and to keep the asset for something like this.

Now after 5 years it was time for change. The last two post-seasons were failures.

Get your head out of the sand

And those contracts to Norm, Ibaka, and Carroll and their lack of a contribution to the playoffs are not on Masai to evaluate talent to help further bring a championship to Toronto?

Norm's contract when signed was looked as good deal from everyone. This is his first year on the new bump up. If you watched any playoff games the past few years, you'll notice he was one of the bright spots.

Ibaka deal is junk but was kept as an asset and only has 2 years.

Carroll was traded.

Masai batting .900 .. team won 59 last season and we just got rid of Casey and Demar for Kawhi and Nurse.

Go find another GM who would do as good as he has done here. You won't because you can't.

[Childs]

Wtf are you talking about.

Casey was extended because we had success. And so was Demar, and to keep the asset for something like this.

Now after 5 years it was time for change. The last two post-seasons were failures.

Get your head out of the sand

And those contracts to Norm, Ibaka, and Carroll and their lack of a contribution to the playoffs are not on Masai to evaluate talent to help further bring a championship to Toronto?

Norm's contract when signed was looked as good deal from everyone. This is his first year on the new bump up. If you watched any playoff games the past few years, you'll notice he was one of the bright spots.

Ibaka deal is junk but was kept as an asset and only has 2 years.

Carroll was traded.

Masai batting .900 .. team won 59 last season and we just got rid of Casey and Demar for Kawhi and Nurse.

Go find another GM who would do as good as he has done here. You won't because you can't.

He's done more good than harm, and the organization is better with him. But to say he is blameless for the organization's post season failures is a fallacy.

[Alpha Mentality]

This isn't just a random player who has just waltz through the Raptors roster revolving door. He spent 9 years in the organization and 5 years with Masai. You do expect some degree of a relationship being formed there and a mutual understanding between the 2.

Just because you have been a long time loyal employee, that doesn't mean you are privy to upper management decisions which could impact business performance. Even if there's a relationship, masai doesn't only have derozan to answer to, He has a moral obligation to produce wins now or the future for the company/investors he works for. If letting Derozan know he's a trade potential at the time could impact the number of wins the follow season, it would be unprofessional of him to disclose it.

But that's all moot because he obviously doesn't feel he needed to inform derozan which is understandable.

Really good post. Pissing off your players (employees) in the long run isn’t a good strategy. You can never expect a trade to happen. You have to constantly be prepared to go to war with what you have even when you’re trying hard to get better. I really don’t think there was a better way Masai could have handeled this to be honest. I think DeMar comes out upset anyway you approach it.

[Alpha Mentality]

Also I’m not ruling out a potential return in 2020 when the Raptors will have tons of cap space and DeRozan will have an opt out to become a free agent. Who knows what the team will look like than but if we strike out with Kawhi and ultimately fail to attract anyone else. I can definitely see DeRozan coming back. If he truly still has the mindset of continuing on his Raptors legacy.

I’m not saying I want that. But I actually think it might. And maybe 2 years under Pop is the best thing to happen to him.

[WuTang_CMB]

And those contracts to Norm, Ibaka, and Carroll and their lack of a contribution to the playoffs are not on Masai to evaluate talent to help further bring a championship to Toronto?

Norm's contract when signed was looked as good deal from everyone. This is his first year on the new bump up. If you watched any playoff games the past few years, you'll notice he was one of the bright spots.

Ibaka deal is junk but was kept as an asset and only has 2 years.

Carroll was traded.

Masai batting .900 .. team won 59 last season and we just got rid of Casey and Demar for Kawhi and Nurse.

Go find another GM who would do as good as he has done here. You won't because you can't.

He's done more good than harm, and the organization is better with him. But to say he is blameless for the organization's post season failures is a fallacy.

What blame would you put on him? Casey and Demar were inherited by him. He ran with them and got better every year. He didn't knee jerk. After 5 post-seasons, he identified that Casey and Demar were not good enough. Now he's made moves to correct the failures. Swapped Casey and Demar for Nurse and Kawhi. That's impressive.

I laugh at anyone who bashes masai.

This team would be back in no man's land if we had another gm