Masai Ujiri is Overrated

[LAL1947]

Yeah they suck right now.

But what shocked me is Masai just did an interview in the second quarter, and said we're rebuilding.

On the first night of an season opener. He said they're not going to be great and they're young (raptors).

Say what you want about how he's overrated (to some extent he definitely is).

But the guy got the biggest Kahoona's in the league.

This is a nice example of how Masai gets over-rated. How does admitting to rebuilding on the first day of the season equate to having "the biggest Kahoonas in the league"... when it is something that everyone already knew or should have known (except some eager-beaver Toronto fans). Perhaps, you may need to up your standards for Kahoonas?

If anything, by not admitting to being in a rebuild earlier, Masai has conned Toronto fans into paying more than they should for season tickets, lol.

Tbh this was obvious to everyone outside of their fan base (and even some realists in the fan base).

Majority of the fan base thought that the Tampa experience (rightfully so), was a year to get a high draft pick and retool on the fly.

He's kept some core great players and didn't flip them for draft picks (Siakam, FVV, OG).

It wasn't and still isn't clear as night and day. The team is composed of competitively good players overall.

What do you think Toronto will be competing for this season?

I figure Toronto is the 12th best team in the East. So, I think they'll be competing for 11th.

[God Squad]

Yeah they suck right now.

But what shocked me is Masai just did an interview in the second quarter, and said we're rebuilding.

On the first night of an season opener. He said they're not going to be great and they're young (raptors).

Say what you want about how he's overrated (to some extent he definitely is).

But the guy got the biggest Kahoona's in the league.

This is a nice example of Masai being over-rated... how does admitting to rebuilding on the first day of the season equate to having "the biggest Kahoonas in the league"... when it is something that everyone already knew or should have known (except some eager-beaver Toronto fans). Perhaps, you may need to up your standards regarding Kahoonas?

If anything, by not admitting to being in a rebuild earlier, Masai has conned Toronto fans into paying more than they should for season tickets, lol.

Tbh this was obvious to everyone outside of their fan base (and even some realists in the fan base).

Majority of the fan base thought that the Tampa experience (rightfully so), was a year to get a high draft pick and retool on the fly.

He's kept some core great players and didn't flip them for draft picks (Siakam, FVV, OG).

It wasn't and still isn't clear as night and day. The team is composed of competitively good players overall.

What do you think Toronto will be competing for this season?

I figure Toronto is the 12th best team in the East. So, I think they'll be competing for 11th.

Theres a clear divide on the raps board. Some of us think we're just not good enough and spent most of our assets on Kawhi/Gasol for the Championship run. While others think we're playoff/playin bound anywhere from 5-9. I still think Masai is a top GM in the league though FYI. Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to take several forward.

Homer-ism a real thing and they're still drinking the Koolaid.

[toshiro_mifune]

I don't know about Masai, but polls and discussions about about overrating or underrating is definitely overrated.

[Johnny Bball]

Getting blown out by the lowly Wizards in their own building to kick off the season.

Where are all the Masai apologists now? This team looks bad. This team IS bad. And I took grief over meaningless preseason games.

Well it was because your points/posts were dumb. And still are dumb.

[Johnny Bball]

Yeah they suck right now.

But what shocked me is Masai just did an interview in the second quarter, and said we're rebuilding.

On the first night of an season opener. He said they're not going to be great and they're young (raptors).

Say what you want about how he's overrated (to some extent he definitely is).

But the guy got the biggest Kahoona's in the league.

This is a nice example of Masai being over-rated... how does admitting to rebuilding on the first day of the season equate to having "the biggest Kahoonas in the league"... when it is something that everyone already knew or should have known (except some eager-beaver Toronto fans). Perhaps, you may need to up your standards regarding Kahoonas?

If anything, by not admitting to being in a rebuild earlier, Masai has conned Toronto fans into paying more than they should for season tickets, lol.

Majority of the fan base thought that the Tampa experience (rightfully so), was a year to get a high draft pick and retool on the fly.

He's kept some core great players and didn't flip them for draft picks (Siakam, FVV, OG).

It wasn't and still isn't clear as night and day. The team is composed of competitively good players overall.

What do you think Toronto will be competing for this season?

I figure Toronto is the 12th best team in the East. So, I think they'll be competing for 11th.

Theres a clear divide on the raps board. Some of us think we're just not good enough and spent most of our assets on Kawhi/Gasol for the Championship run. While others think we're playoff/playin bound anywhere from 5-9. I still think Masai is a top GM in the league though FYI. Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to take several forward.

Homer-ism a real thing and they're still drinking the Koolaid.

Uh no. Half the board thinks we are crap. The other half says plain or close, Nobody on that board thinks we can contend now or contend with one big trade.

[Clay Davis]

Eh he's pretty good. You'd have to be an abject idiot to think he's bad or even not significantly above average. He doesn't kill it every year but, really, who does? Every GM has had a team that has either had off-years or has benefitted off of dumb luck. Lol you could literally argue any GM in the league with a somewhat good reputation is over-rated, which tells you more about the role than about the quality of GMs themselves.

Of course, this board is called "RealGM"; many people treat their time here as an opportunity to be an armchair GM, which is great. People should have their fun. At the same time, realize your hobby is a lot harder than the actual thing, and the decisions themselves are a lot harder to make when you're sitting in the big chair and things aren't the way that they seem.

To play Satan's avocado, Masai is basically being paid more than any other GM I can think of. Does he deserve that celebrity salary? It's easy to think he's really good when you compare him with the average GM, but is he when you compare him to the best of the best?

Sent from my moto g(8) power lite using RealGM mobile app

[Clay Davis]

Getting blown out by the lowly Wizards in their own building to kick off the season.

Where are all the Masai apologists now? This team looks bad. This team IS bad. And I took grief over meaningless preseason games.

Lmao literally every sentence in your OP was wrong. You lack shame.

Sent from my moto g(8) power lite using RealGM mobile app

[God Squad]

This is a nice example of Masai being over-rated... how does admitting to rebuilding on the first day of the season equate to having "the biggest Kahoonas in the league"... when it is something that everyone already knew or should have known (except some eager-beaver Toronto fans). Perhaps, you may need to up your standards regarding Kahoonas?

If anything, by not admitting to being in a rebuild earlier, Masai has conned Toronto fans into paying more than they should for season tickets, lol.


What do you think Toronto will be competing for this season?

I figure Toronto is the 12th best team in the East. So, I think they'll be competing for 11th.

Theres a clear divide on the raps board. Some of us think we're just not good enough and spent most of our assets on Kawhi/Gasol for the Championship run. While others think we're playoff/playin bound anywhere from 5-9. I still think Masai is a top GM in the league though FYI. Sometimes you have to take a step back in order to take several forward.

Homer-ism a real thing and they're still drinking the Koolaid.

Uh no. Half the board thinks we are crap. The other half says plain or close, Nobody on that board thinks we can contend now or contend with one big trade.

lol. Okay whatever you say. Raps could win next game and people will say "TwO in ShAmBleS". Do you even check the threads?

[johanliebert]

Getting blown out by the lowly Wizards in their own building to kick off the season.

Where are all the Masai apologists now? This team looks bad. This team IS bad. And I took grief over meaningless preseason games.

Nobody said this team is good.

Well there was a thread about top benches in the league and Raptors fans were pretty loud and prominent about your bench and playoff chances.

I also got laughed at by Raptors for saying they’re a lock for under 36 wins.

I’m not saying they have a bad team or future, but this season just isn’t going to be the one for them.

I saw numerous YouTube videos and threads here about how Toronto would shock the league.

When you got to rely on OG for buckets gl on winning 30 games. Only raptor fans would believe he could develop into a 20 pot scorer

[nikster]

Getting blown out by the lowly Wizards in their own building to kick off the season.

Where are all the Masai apologists now? This team looks bad. This team IS bad. And I took grief over meaningless preseason games.

At least our GM didn't give up assets for a $45 million player that makes our team worse

[Quattro]

Getting blown out by the lowly Wizards in their own building to kick off the season.

Where are all the Masai apologists now? This team looks bad. This team IS bad. And I took grief over meaningless preseason games.

You took grief because your take was beyond stupid. Aging teams who lose their superstar and who don’t play on a team that attracts star free agents are bound for a rebuild. That’s clearly where the raptors are. They’re not going to be as bad as they looked last night when they get their best offensive player back and when their young players start getting more comfortable but the best result they can reasonably expect this year is likely making the playoffs.

[GeorgeSears]

Granted, I'm a bit biased because he was in Denver but I do think Masai is a great GM. However, there's only so much you can do in a market like Toronto. It's a top 10 market, but the players treat it as a bottom 3 market because 1. It's in Canada and 2. It's cold, and so no big free agent wants to go there. I had to look back to see how many "big" free agents they were able to sign (not extend) and it's like Hedo Turkoglu, Rafer Alston and past-their-prime Olajuwon and Mark Jackson. The rest were acquired through drafts and trades, and then extensions.

Look at what happened with Kawhi, he left a championship roster after 1 year to go to LA.

That's just the unfortunate reality of playing in a city no one wants to play in.

[MoMoneyMoProbs]

I'll just put this here. Masai has made one contending team in Toronto. I'm not sure if any are coming soon, but it's possible. He's made some great moves and I have faith in him...but that could be temporary. It'd be interesting to see how long a leash he has before continued success if it isn't on the near horizon.

They're charging $890 CAD for a single lower bowl ticket.



It's safe to say, upper management doesn't care when they price themselves like this, and still sell out full houses.

https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/raptors-fans-stunned-by-ludicrous-ticket-prices-for-season-opener-172130270.html

Yes I agree that they are charging an arm and a leg for a ticket, but you are also cherry picking a sideline prime seat for the Kyle Lowry return game.


I hope MLSE wakes up with regards to the ticket prices though - it's getting quite ridiculous

[MoMoneyMoProbs]

I don't know about Masai, but polls and discussions about about overrating or underrating is definitely overrated.

Underrated post

[KrazyP]

Nobody said this team is good.

Well there was a thread about top benches in the league and Raptors fans were pretty loud and prominent about your bench and playoff chances.

I also got laughed at by Raptors for saying they’re a lock for under 36 wins.

I’m not saying they have a bad team or future, but this season just isn’t going to be the one for them.

I saw numerous YouTube videos and threads here about how Toronto would shock the league.

When you got to rely on OG for buckets gl on winning 30 games. Only raptor fans would believe he could develop into a 20 pot scorer

Anunoby averaged 16 ppg last year on high efficiency (.605 TS) and a very low usage rate (19%).....if you up his usage and decrease his efficiency just a bit, 20ppg should be attainable....especially since he's added to his game this season.

I've seen your OG hate spread across the Raptor forum.....I think you may be drawing too many conclusions from a single game sample size because that single game is inline with your personal beliefs....confirmation bias.

[durka]

Yeah they suck right now.

But what shocked me is Masai just did an interview in the second quarter, and said we're rebuilding.

On the first night of an season opener. He said they're not going to be great and they're young (raptors).

Say what you want about how he's overrated (to some extent he definitely is).

But the guy got the biggest Kahoona's in the league.

This is a nice example of how Masai gets over-rated. How does admitting to rebuilding on the first day of the season equate to having "the biggest Kahoonas in the league"... when it is something that everyone already knew or should have known (except some eager-beaver Toronto fans). Perhaps, you may need to up your standards for Kahoonas?

If anything, by not admitting to being in a rebuild earlier, Masai has conned Toronto fans into paying more than they should for season tickets, lol.

Tbh this was obvious to everyone outside of their fan base (and even some realists in the fan base).

Majority of the fan base thought that the Tampa experience (rightfully so), was a year to get a high draft pick and retool on the fly.

He's kept some core great players and didn't flip them for draft picks (Siakam, FVV, OG).

It wasn't and still isn't clear as night and day. The team is composed of competitively good players overall.

What do you think Toronto will be competing for this season?

I figure Toronto is the 12th best team in the East. So, I think they'll be competing for 11th.

A guy who fired the reigning coach of the year for an unproven assistant coach and trades his most popular player for a guy on a 1 yr deal most definitely has huge balls. Those guys were selling tickets, he could have coasted on making the playoffs every year and still gotten props. Realistically, if they never traded Derozan or JV they would have made the playoffs again last year and that would have been 9 years straight. He made schrewd short term moves that paid off monumentally, but there were huge risks involved.

[defstarcon]

this didn't age well.

[nikster]

Yeah they suck right now.

But what shocked me is Masai just did an interview in the second quarter, and said we're rebuilding.

On the first night of an season opener. He said they're not going to be great and they're young (raptors).

Say what you want about how he's overrated (to some extent he definitely is).

But the guy got the biggest Kahoona's in the league.

This is a nice example of how Masai gets over-rated. How does admitting to rebuilding on the first day of the season equate to having "the biggest Kahoonas in the league"... when it is something that everyone already knew or should have known (except some eager-beaver Toronto fans). Perhaps, you may need to up your standards for Kahoonas?

If anything, by not admitting to being in a rebuild earlier, Masai has conned Toronto fans into paying more than they should for season tickets, lol.

Majority of the fan base thought that the Tampa experience (rightfully so), was a year to get a high draft pick and retool on the fly.

He's kept some core great players and didn't flip them for draft picks (Siakam, FVV, OG).

It wasn't and still isn't clear as night and day. The team is composed of competitively good players overall.

What do you think Toronto will be competing for this season?

I figure Toronto is the 12th best team in the East. So, I think they'll be competing for 11th.

A guy who fired the reigning coach of the year for an unproven assistant coach and trades his most popular player for a guy on a 1 yr deal most definitely has huge balls. Those guys were selling tickets, he could have coasted on making the playoffs every year and still gotten props. Realistically, if they never traded Derozan or JV they would have made the playoffs again last year and that would have been 9 years straight. He made schrewd short term moves that paid off monumentally, but there were huge risks involved.

Yeah that trade was a huge risk. Best stretch of playoff success in Raptors history with Derozan. If they traded for Kawhi but get bounced early, it would be a seen as a disaster. its not like they were seen as instant title favourties after that trade.

[myzticle]

There are couple of things I ask from a GM:
Establish a culture/identity
Let coaches coach
Although realistic not possible, still inquire when any player becomes available
Make judgements based on what you think is best, not the fans

Although these might sound simple, I don't think half of gms in the league qualify.

As a Raptor fan, there are times when questionable calls were made (Bruno, Barnes) but at the end of day, we all say trust masai and dream of bright future because we all have little place in us, how ridiculous the decision was (I cried when he picked barns), that assure us that it's going to be ok. Masai will get us a ring. I think this makes him underrated.

[mulamutti]

They move Lowry for Dragic who refuses to play for them. They then decide to not draft the BPA and elite prospect guard, Jalen Suggs. Who should have been the face of the PG spot moving foward. This team seems like it has no real direction given the past 2 years worth of transactions. Kawhi left, Marc, Ibaka, Powell, Lowry. Who is next? Siakam?

They have a good scouting team so I give them the benefit of the doubt for now but if Suggs goes on blow up in Orlando, and Barnes becomes just another role player or he busts, its going to haunt this team for years.

A lot of Raptor fans are going to come in and defend the hell out of him and I completely understand. I'm just stating that from the outside looking in, it doesn't look good. And on a side note - I like Barnes. I also like Kuminga, Sengun and Moody too. But not over Suggs. That selection shouldn't have been complicated to make.

You don't rate front office based on one move, particularly the president. You could rate GM by a series of moves, but you rate the president based on broad factors like culture, player development, scouting, medical staff, analytics staff, value of the franchise, merchandising, of course winning, etc. Particularly in the NBA with all the collusion for superteams going on, the front office can only do so much. i mean if kawhi stayed, they'd technically still be contenders. That's not on Masai.

As to the specific moves you mentioned, uncontrollable factors like kawhi and COVID ravaged the raptors and played a hand in their decision to gut and rebuild. You need to move on and evaluate their rebuild at this point.

There is also another external factor, that the best run teams lose a lot of staff. Their scouts, medical staff, coaching staff etc. get poached way more than crap teams like the knicks. Just ask the spurs. The whole league tries to copy the successful formula by poaching, and so these well run organizations need to keep inventing and finding new diamonds in the rough.