Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry

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Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#1 » by RealGM Wiretap » Thu Dec 6, 2018 2:03 pm

Masai Ujiri insists he doesn't have an acrimonious relationship with Kyle Lowry following the Toronto Raptors' trade of DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard.


Ujiri told ESPN's The Jump that he has never done anything malicious toward Lowry but that if it was wrong to deal DeMar DeRozan, "Yes, that's what I did wrong."


"I understand what happened with DeMar," Ujiri said. "There are two things in this business that are tough. ... When a player leaves -- and Kawhi [Leonard] left. And then, when a player gets traded. Those two things are tough. And in our position, we have to do them, and we have to deal with them.


"And in a trade, it's tough to communicate with players in that manner. We have to communicate with agents and can't go and say, 'Oh, you're going to get traded.'"


Lowry remains loyal to DeRozan and his comments about Ujiri left a lot up for interpretation.


"Ah, he's the president of basketball operations. And that's it," Lowry said. "I mean, I come here and I do my job. ... He does his job, I do my job. Right? That's what you do."


Ujiri defended the move, which has helped Toronto secure a 21-5 record to start the season.


"We thought, 'We have to change. We have to be better,'" Ujiri said, referring to the Raptors' perennial ouster from the playoffs. "We have to be better; we have to win. The game is all about winning and treating people the right way. And honestly ... god bless DeMar. What I did wrong was trade him. Yes, that's what I did wrong if it's wrong. You know, like, we traded players, but nothing else I did; there's nothing else."


Ujiri was also effusive in his praise for Lowry's contributions and personality.


"It's been like that with Kyle since I came here," Ujiri said of their neutral but professional relationship. "We've never -- we don't have a confrontation. We don't -- I've never done anything wrong to him. It's just this kind of decision-making that we have to go through. And I know how Kyle is, so honestly, I love him to death.


"He plays basketball the right way. He gives it his all, you know. And I'm so used to it. And you know he has a good heart. And I know that I haven't done anything wrong to him. I didn't trade him."

Via ESPN

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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#2 » by SVG » Thu Dec 6, 2018 2:39 pm

Say what you want about Masai Ujiri, but the dude is a beast at what he does. I admired his work ethic since he was in Denver.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#3 » by Durant Durant » Thu Dec 6, 2018 3:18 pm

maybe he misled him (and Demar) in private.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#4 » by ebrian » Thu Dec 6, 2018 3:33 pm

Personally as a Raptors fan, just seeing the way all this unfolded, I kinda think that Kyle Lowry was just carefully wording his answer so he wouldn't offend his buddy, DeMar DeRozan. All his answer shows is that he's a professional but also a loyal friend. His answer prevents any sort of awkwardness at the annual DeRozan-Lowry Family Christmas dinner. :)
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#5 » by gpoon » Thu Dec 6, 2018 3:43 pm

SVG wrote:Say what you want about Masai Ujiri, but the dude is a beast at what he does. I admired his work ethic since he was in Denver.


LMAO this man wants Masai to hire him
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#6 » by King4Day » Thu Dec 6, 2018 3:44 pm

If they reach the finals or even win it all, he'll never admit how glad he is that the trade went down. I understand the loyalty but Lowry has to know by now that this deal has given Toronto its best team in franchise history and first real shot at making the finals.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#7 » by Jcity08 » Thu Dec 6, 2018 4:30 pm

If he made an impression on Derozan that he wasn't going to get traded, that would be Masai's only fault. The trade itself was not a mistake though, and should not be something he ever needs to apologize for.

He's done good by both Derozan & Lowry with the contracts they were signed and the amount of years he gave them unlicensed control of the team as co-captains.

And Derozan wasn't trade to "no mans land", he was dealt to a legendary organization & a legendary coach in the Spurs & Pop.

This was a basketball decision every team would have made in a heartbeat in the same position. I dare anyone to say they wouldn't trade Derozan & Poetl for Kawhi & Green.

Lowry knows this too, even if he carefully curates his words to the media, deep down he knows that among all the years he's been in the league, this team is the best he's had & the best chance for him to even sniff the NBA finals, if we make it that far.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#8 » by DoItALL9 » Thu Dec 6, 2018 5:06 pm

Is Ujiri gonna look to move Kyle Lowry after this season if they don't make it to our win the Finals?
Would the Spurs have interest in him this time around in the summer?
Kyle doesn't have an option on next season does he?

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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#9 » by Cassius » Thu Dec 6, 2018 6:17 pm

DoItALL9 wrote:Is Ujiri gonna look to move Kyle Lowry after this season if they don't make it to our win the Finals?
Would the Spurs have interest in him this time around in the summer?
Kyle doesn't have an option on next season does he?

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Kyle will make 30M next year so he's not opting out, nor would it be easy for Masai to get value out of his expiring contract without taking on some longer-term crap deals in the process. If Kawhi stays, the only way Kyle goes out is if there's another Kawhi-like trade demand situation, and the guy coming is All-NBA and making (or sign-and-trading for) supermax-type of money and Kyle would have to go back. Someone like a Harden, Durant, AD or Giannis... which is just as unlikely as the Kawhi-situation was. I wouldn't put it past Masai to move him for an Oladipo, Jokic or Lillard either in the same scenario, if MU wanted to get younger, but that's about it. If Kawhi leaves, it's likely a fire sale on everyone, as Lowry, Ibaka, Valanciunas, CJ Miles and Van Vleet all expire after next season.

Assuming Kawhi comes back, Kyle will likely play next year out, sign a cheaper sweetheart deal like 3/45 w partial guarantees on 3rd year and retires a Raptor.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#10 » by basketballRob » Thu Dec 6, 2018 6:20 pm

We're with you Kyle!! #Me too
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#11 » by ontnut » Thu Dec 6, 2018 7:13 pm

Put it this way, Masai is an EOY. He's been the best at his position, and continues to be in the top 3 league wide.

I can't say the same for Lowry, or Derozan for that matter. Neither has been 1st team all-NBA, or an MVP.

If I have to choose who I keep, I'm keeping, (and siding) with Masai.

They all did the job they were hired to do, to the best of their abilities. Unfortunately, the best of Demar (and Kyle) wasn't enough to win everything. Masai still can do better, as evidenced by the Kawhi trade. There's nothing to be mad about here. It's just because Kyle has an interpersonal conflict of interests, as it was his friend who was traded. He's not shedding a tear for Poeltl, right?
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#12 » by tribulations » Thu Dec 6, 2018 7:39 pm

ontnut wrote:Put it this way, Masai is an EOY. He's been the best at his position, and continues to be in the top 3 league wide.

I can't say the same for Lowry, or Derozan for that matter. Neither has been 1st team all-NBA, or an MVP.

If I have to choose who I keep, I'm keeping, (and siding) with Masai.

They all did the job they were hired to do, to the best of their abilities. Unfortunately, the best of Demar (and Kyle) wasn't enough to win everything. Masai still can do better, as evidenced by the Kawhi trade. There's nothing to be mad about here. It's just because Kyle has an interpersonal conflict of interests, as it was his friend who was traded. He's not shedding a tear for Poeltl, right?


Good summary.

Slightly OT but I feel like a trade with Lowry as centrepiece could actually put them over the top. As constructed they may even be good enough though.

I'd be thankful for getting a decent look at winning a ring if I was Kyle. His post season performances have never set the world on fire. He should feel lucky to still be a Raptor at this point.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#13 » by Nutty Nats Fan » Thu Dec 6, 2018 9:02 pm

gpoon wrote:
SVG wrote:Say what you want about Masai Ujiri, but the dude is a beast at what he does. I admired his work ethic since he was in Denver.


LMAO this man wants Masai to hire him

Naw man, Masai is just that good. He's the one who traded Bargs for a 1st and Camby, plus other change.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#14 » by ontnut » Thu Dec 6, 2018 9:24 pm

tribulations wrote:
ontnut wrote:Put it this way, Masai is an EOY. He's been the best at his position, and continues to be in the top 3 league wide.

I can't say the same for Lowry, or Derozan for that matter. Neither has been 1st team all-NBA, or an MVP.

If I have to choose who I keep, I'm keeping, (and siding) with Masai.

They all did the job they were hired to do, to the best of their abilities. Unfortunately, the best of Demar (and Kyle) wasn't enough to win everything. Masai still can do better, as evidenced by the Kawhi trade. There's nothing to be mad about here. It's just because Kyle has an interpersonal conflict of interests, as it was his friend who was traded. He's not shedding a tear for Poeltl, right?


Good summary.

Slightly OT but I feel like a trade with Lowry as centrepiece could actually put them over the top. As constructed they may even be good enough though.

I'd be thankful for getting a decent look at winning a ring if I was Kyle. His post season performances have never set the world on fire. He should feel lucky to still be a Raptor at this point.

It's tough, because Lowry's contract is pretty high, and he is aging, so his value to another team is fairly low, as most contenders already have their PG in place. It's a lesser version of the John Wall problem in Washington.

This is definitely the best team situation for him as he ages - he has no reason to want to leave Toronto, if winning is his priority (and I believe it is).

Trading Lowry would also open a big hole at PG for the Raptors - FVV and Wright are good backups, but certainly not starters on a contender. He's vital to the team's style of play, so he's pretty much untouchable as long as we are contenders. I say the same for Green, Ibaka, Siakam. JV is on the borderline of being untouchable too - despite what some of the Raptors fanbase will tell you. Last night's game was a great example. OG, Wright, FVV, Miles, Powell are the trade chips we have, so there's a salary issue in terms of bringing in a 3rd piece. I'll be very surprised if Masai doesn't make a trade before the deadline.

If Raptors had some better chemistry/familiarity with Kawhi at this point, I'd be a big proponent of resting Lowry more, and getting FVV and Wright more time. But we need to develop that team chemistry among the playoff rotation, so Lowry can't rest too much especially as we move towards the playoffs. That's why I think it's smart that they rested Kawhi early in the season.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#15 » by Hustlehard23 » Thu Dec 6, 2018 9:36 pm

Cassius wrote:
DoItALL9 wrote:Is Ujiri gonna look to move Kyle Lowry after this season if they don't make it to our win the Finals?
Would the Spurs have interest in him this time around in the summer?
Kyle doesn't have an option on next season does he?

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Kyle will make 30M next year so he's not opting out, nor would it be easy for Masai to get value out of his expiring contract without taking on some longer-term crap deals in the process. If Kawhi stays, the only way Kyle goes out is if there's another Kawhi-like trade demand situation, and the guy coming is All-NBA and making (or sign-and-trading for) supermax-type of money and Kyle would have to go back. Someone like a Harden, Durant, AD or Giannis... which is just as unlikely as the Kawhi-situation was. I wouldn't put it past Masai to move him for an Oladipo, Jokic or Lillard either in the same scenario, if MU wanted to get younger, but that's about it. If Kawhi leaves, it's likely a fire sale on everyone, as Lowry, Ibaka, Valanciunas, CJ Miles and Van Vleet all expire after next season.

Assuming Kawhi comes back, Kyle will likely play next year out, sign a cheaper sweetheart deal like 3/45 w partial guarantees on 3rd year and retires a Raptor.


Why would any team deal those guys for Kyle Lowery in ANY situation?
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#16 » by deeps6x » Thu Dec 6, 2018 9:43 pm

Someone too DeRozan for Kawhi Freaking Leonard. You know it could happen with these lesser star talents if they wanted to force their way off their teams.
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#17 » by RoundMound » Fri Dec 7, 2018 12:15 am

The NBA, where players think they are in charge- SMH
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#18 » by TheBoi10 » Fri Dec 7, 2018 1:02 am

I'm so glad we have the second coming of Jordan instead of DeChucker DeMatador :lol: .
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Re: Masai Ujiri: I've Never Done Anything Wrong To Kyle Lowry 

Post#19 » by Cassius » Fri Dec 7, 2018 1:55 pm

Hustlehard23 wrote:Why would any team deal those guys for Kyle Lowery in ANY situation?


Because the star demands a trade. I thought I made it pretty clear that it's unlikely to occur, but that's the only way it makes sense for Masai to move Kyle. As deeps6x echoed, one of the better GMs in RC Buford just took Derozan for Kawhi. Jimmy Butler was just moved for Saric & Covington and the Wolves had to send out a pick in the process. This stuff happens... it sucks for the team losing the star, but we see it happen pretty much every other season.
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