I preface this with saying Masai is a fine President, but that people need to stop looking at him as one of the elite of the elite President's in basketball.
Before I get "you are a hater who doesn't watch basketball", just a reminder I was the one saying Pascal and Fred will struggle big time against the Celtics and if you pay Fred 25 million, you will be stuck with one of the worst contracts in the NBA. I am only speaking in facts so as to make people realize that Masai is good but looking overall, he has had a lot of bad and the current state of the team isn't exactly much to write home about.
Now, when Masai took the team, he started strong, one of the best trades in franchise history (Bargs), and then Rudy Gay for the Sacramento package that netted us players to help make us a playoff team and get Vasquez who netted us OG and Norm.
Great start to his presidency.
Now I will give him a pass at the draft given that he took a project in Bruno and that he is relatively a great drafter (though Capella, Bogdanovic, Jokic, Grant, Dinwiddie, Harris, Powell, and Clarkson were all on the board).
Now, Kyle was basically traded to the Knicks but they backed out because they didn't want to get fleeced again, which in the end turned out great for us because Kyle has now had a borderline HOF career, but it cannot be ignored that he was going to trade him for MWP, Shumpert and a 2018 first rounder (which if the Knicks had Kyle would likely be a middling pick at best).
Okay, deals fall apart, let us leave that as well, but the next part cannot be ignored.
Masai signs Demarre Carroll who has recently had injuries to his Achilles and knee, two of the most red flag injuries in the league, and he not only signs him, but pays him 15 million dollars to be his "Lebron Stopper". 15 mil back then is something like 20+ currently for a 4-6 option on any good team. A similar player in Jae Crowder makes 7 mil in the current CBA with a higher cap. Luckily Wes Matthews was injured, otherwise Masai's plan was to sign him as well.
Okay, a blemish on the record is pretty common for most GM's, so let us say it was a mistake, but then if we start compounding it with others...
Masai had a core of Kyle, Val, and Derozan with their coach Casey for years. This core that kept getting embarrassed. Somehow Casey was not fired after the Wizards sweep (first time in NBA history the team with home court advantage was swept), and we continued to go with the same guys who had major issues in Demar who was one of the worst defenders in the league and who was unwilling/unable to learn the 3 point shot, which in today's NBA makes him a hugely flawed player.
Now he has some solid hits, signing Biyombo, Poetl is a tbd but got Kawhi so that's fine, and obviously leaving out contract, getting Pascal at 27 is a steal.
Then of course Fred not too long after which is again, a great gem of an undrafted player.
So some great moves by Masai, with some questionable ones, the biggest being that he kept going with a flawed core from the coach to their "star player".
Kyle and Serge are FA's in 2017, after a sweep to the Cavs and what do we do? We sign Kyle to a 30 million dollar deal for 2 years, and Serge to a 20+ million dollar deal. Kyle who didn't have a market and even asked to go to SA who didn't want him, and Serge who is a backup big in the NBA. For comparisons sake Brooke Lopez makes 13 million dollars as an all-star who is better than Serge in almost every facet.
We have a trend here of Masai handing out horrible deals left and right, which is the huge fear I have moving forward with Fred.
Masai then has to unload the horrendous contract of Carroll by trading a first and a second rounder to the Nets. Horrible asset management.
Solid pick in OG who is going to be a longstanding 3D in this league.
Then the big move, Kawhi. After years of going with a flawed core, a mediocre coach, a one in a million chance to get a player of Kawhi's caliber for one season comes along, and he jumps at it. Great trade of course, the best we have ever made, he carried us to the title.
Now of course one could say, but he did make the Kawhi trade, and he did get the title, sure, I agree, as I have said, this isn't a Masai is the worst GM in basketball, more so he is not this Godlike figure he is made out to be. If you look back he is great with drafting, trading for depth, but has huge issues with asset management in terms of contracts, handing out some of the worst deals in the league (such has Pascal and his max before he had done anything to earn it), and going with a flawed core. Masai also has huge issues with finding elite talent. Kawhi he got only because of the one year off very odd situation, but talent wise Toronto has never gotten great talent through Masai. Lot of good talent and depth pieces, but now that Kawhi is gone we don't really have any star power. Great coaching and depth but no starpower.
Masai will be here a long time, we all know that, but his patience and lucking into Kawhi do not forgive what we currently have. Kawhi is gone and we don't look very different to the Demar team and are severely lacking in elite talent.
If he keeps running the course it will be those same Demar years and the same people who hated those mediocre teams, the ones that were never truly a contender, and the chances a one in a million Kawhi trade happen again are slim to none.
GMs jobs are to build a sustained contender, and a one off title doesn't forgive Masai for prior to one season a mediocre Presidency.
Let's enjoy the personal jabs and people questioning if I watch basketball or hate myself
