Masai Ujiri is Overrated

[ratul]

Masai is more beloved in canada than the beaver tail. Hot take!

[LuckyLeprechaun]

He is a good GM. He is only overrated by people who act like he is the best GM.

Best is subjective, I don’t think there’s a clear best, but name me 3 better GMs

Well how are we going to judge it? If we go by how many title winners built then Buford (Spurs), Meyers (Golden State) and Riley (Heat) all have more and a few guys have as many as Ujiri. If we're going by recency then you have to put Horst for the Bucks ahead of him as well.

Then you have to look at context. He built a title winner 1 year. Good for him he deserves credit for that. It was also a weird year with lots of injuries and we all know your Raptors weren't beating a fully healthy Golden State team. He also got Kawhi for way below his value at the time because the Spurs were stubborn and refused to trade Kawhi to California like he wanted. Most teams weren't in a position to take that risk but the Raptors knew that they had to break up the Lowry/DeRozan duo because it wasn't working so they rolled the dice. Again he gets credit for even doing it but it's not a replicable thing but a highly unique circumstance.

Outside of that he's done good but I wouldn't say he's done anything worthy of being considered one of the best. He's drafted lots of good players, but he hasn't drafted a #1 star type. He hasn't acquired a #1 star through any other means outside of Kawhi and that was a 1-year rental. The way the NBA works, he's not going to get to any more finals until he can actually get another #1 star. Maybe he will maybe he won't. I certainly think he deserves more time before we judge fully but if we're 5 years down the road and he still hasn't gotten one and the Raptors are just a consistent 45 win team and a 4-8 seed every year then the notion that he's a top 3 GM will seem asinine.

[CharityStripe34]

He knows how to identify undervalued talent and has the right developmental staff. He's the perfect GM for NBA markets that free agents avoid.

It's too bad they avoid Toronto, it's a super fun city (4th largest NBA market) with all the big-city trappings and none of the "NYC douche-baggery."

[Caped Crusader]

I don't think Ujiri is overrated since he went on offszn sabatticals with Master of hestay Jon Horse.

Jon Horse is a father figure.

Weird joke.

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[SelfishPlayer]

He knows how to identify undervalued talent and has the right developmental staff. He's the perfect GM for NBA markets that free agents avoid.

It's too bad they avoid Toronto, it's a super fun city (4th largest NBA market) with all the big-city trappings and none of the "NYC douche-baggery."

Americans don't actually prefer living in urban environments. When you think of NYC and Toronto you think of people immigrating from other countries to live there. The trend is that as people become more americanized they want more SPACE, better weather, and lower taxes. I totally understand why American NBA free agents rather sign in LA, Houston, Miami, or stay put rather than sign in Toronto. If New York City could produce great NBA talent like they did in the past then Toronto would have a shot. It doesn't help Toronto any that Boston exists. Who would sign in Toronto if both NY teams and Boston are offering the same contract?

[Caped Crusader]

He is a good GM. He is only overrated by people who act like he is the best GM.

Best is subjective, I don’t think there’s a clear best, but name me 3 better GMs

Well how are we going to judge it? If we go by how many title winners built then Buford (Spurs), Meyers (Golden State) and Riley (Heat) all have more and a few guys have as many as Ujiri. If we're going by recency then you have to put Horst for the Bucks ahead of him as well.

Then you have to look at context. He built a title winner 1 year. Good for him he deserves credit for that. It was also a weird year with lots of injuries and we all know your Raptors weren't beating a fully healthy Golden State team. He also got Kawhi for way below his value at the time because the Spurs were stubborn and refused to trade Kawhi to California like he wanted. Most teams weren't in a position to take that risk but the Raptors knew that they had to break up the Lowry/DeRozan duo because it wasn't working so they rolled the dice. Again he gets credit for even doing it but it's not a replicable thing but a highly unique circumstance.

Outside of that he's done good but I wouldn't say he's done anything worthy of being considered one of the best. He's drafted lots of good players, but he hasn't drafted a #1 star type. He hasn't acquired a #1 star through any other means outside of Kawhi and that was a 1-year rental. The way the NBA works, he's not going to get to any more finals until he can actually get another #1 star. Maybe he will maybe he won't. I certainly think he deserves more time before we judge fully but if we're 5 years down the road and he still hasn't gotten one and the Raptors are just a consistent 45 win team and a 4-8 seed every year then the notion that he's a top 3 GM will seem asinine.

Damn where do I start? Your whole post is full of wild inconsistencies.

If you're going on recent titles Buford and Riley shouldn't even be there. Your line of thinking seems to punish Masai while awarding other executives and teams.

Strange of you to discount his championship due to it being a weird year full of injuries. What injuries are you talking about? KD in the finals and a 1 1/2 game absence in the finals? What about the rest of the teams they faced? Odd take to suggest it was a weird year for injuries when they played healthy teams throughout except for the finals and of course they didn't have OG throughout the playoffs. About Kawhi, he took a gamble on him. It was a huge one because it wasn't clear how he'd look and other teams weren't willing to take the risk, but par for the course, you're giving credit without really intending to.

You talk about looking at context without actually looking at any of it yourself glossing over it whenever you see fit. You refer to his good drafting but not coming away with a homerun yet. The Raptors have not had a lottery pick in years until this year where we selected Scottie so it's weird that you would use that against him as if he's the GM of the Kings with multiple high picks and nothing to show for it.

The hope for the fans is that Scottie becomes the cornerstone of the franchise. All other picks during his tenure have been very high outside of the lottery except for Jakob Poeltl. Otherwise Siakam was the 27th pick, OG the 23rd pick and Fred went undrafted just to name a few. If you ask me the Raptors cashed in on those picks so I'm not exactly sure what you were expecting. It's not that often you draft superstars that high in the draft.

Getting a #1 player is not an easy thing to do but Masai is methodical and isn't about making a big move for the sake of making one. It's almost as if you're completely ignoring the success the Raptors had for the 6 years before they won a championship. Those seasons didn't lead to a championship but there was playoff success in between. In a development season without a clear cut superstar on the team at the moment, the Raptors are not that far off from the top 4 teams despite not having one.

It goes to show your inconsistent takes on Masai compared to other executives. Miami doesn't have a #1 player and yet you highly regard Riley. Buford hasn't done anything significant since Duncan retired. Warriors weren't going to beat a healthy Cavs team and then signed KD after, only because he wanted an easy path to a ring and won additional championships. That was widely considered to be one of the weakest moves in NBA history forming an impossible tandem to beat, so really should any team that beat them due to health concerns be considered any less? According to you the answer is yes. I don't see you faulting or discounting those organizations for their success yet you hold the Raptors in a different regard. Try doing a better job at hiding your bias.

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[facothomas22]

A extreme hot take you have here. Masasi have build this team back into a good Team after just 1 year of rebuilding. The Raptors have maybe one of the better young cores in the NBA right now. Not even including players that are in their prime like Fred VanVleet and Pascal Siakam.

[MrBigShot]

Masai said eff what the mock draft says and took what the guy that will likely win RoY.

He is a brilliant GM and has been since getting a shot in Denver.

[LegendOfSalmons]

He is a good GM. He is only overrated by people who act like he is the best GM.

Best is subjective, I don’t think there’s a clear best, but name me 3 better GMs

Well how are we going to judge it? If we go by how many title winners built then Buford (Spurs), Meyers (Golden State) and Riley (Heat) all have more and a few guys have as many as Ujiri. If we're going by recency then you have to put Horst for the Bucks ahead of him as well.

Then you have to look at context. He built a title winner 1 year. Good for him he deserves credit for that. It was also a weird year with lots of injuries and we all know your Raptors weren't beating a fully healthy Golden State team. He also got Kawhi for way below his value at the time because the Spurs were stubborn and refused to trade Kawhi to California like he wanted. Most teams weren't in a position to take that risk but the Raptors knew that they had to break up the Lowry/DeRozan duo because it wasn't working so they rolled the dice. Again he gets credit for even doing it but it's not a replicable thing but a highly unique circumstance.

Outside of that he's done good but I wouldn't say he's done anything worthy of being considered one of the best. He's drafted lots of good players, but he hasn't drafted a #1 star type. He hasn't acquired a #1 star through any other means outside of Kawhi and that was a 1-year rental. The way the NBA works, he's not going to get to any more finals until he can actually get another #1 star. Maybe he will maybe he won't. I certainly think he deserves more time before we judge fully but if we're 5 years down the road and he still hasn't gotten one and the Raptors are just a consistent 45 win team and a 4-8 seed every year then the notion that he's a top 3 GM will seem asinine.

You're not very good at this and embarassing the fan base. Not only did you ramble on, you managed to display complete ignorance on the topic. Might as well edit your whole post and edit it to say, "I have no idea what I'm talking about".

[Sofia]

Raps won 58 games in their championship year 3 seasons ago.

Only 2 players are left from that team, and the team has retooled. They now have an average age 3 years younger than what they had in championship year, and younger than many other "young" teams like the the Hornets Pelicans or Celtics.

They still won 48 or 49 games this season and look like real threat to make the second round again this season.

They still have all their own first round draft picks between 2023 and 2029. They are projecting to have $100M in free cap space in 2024.

Sounds like a pretty damn good GM to me.

[Sofia]

He is a good GM. He is only overrated by people who act like he is the best GM.

Best is subjective, I don’t think there’s a clear best, but name me 3 better GMs

Well how are we going to judge it? If we go by how many title winners built then Buford (Spurs), Meyers (Golden State) and Riley (Heat) all have more and a few guys have as many as Ujiri. If we're going by recency then you have to put Horst for the Bucks ahead of him as well.

Then you have to look at context. He built a title winner 1 year. Good for him he deserves credit for that. It was also a weird year with lots of injuries and we all know your Raptors weren't beating a fully healthy Golden State team. He also got Kawhi for way below his value at the time because the Spurs were stubborn and refused to trade Kawhi to California like he wanted. Most teams weren't in a position to take that risk but the Raptors knew that they had to break up the Lowry/DeRozan duo because it wasn't working so they rolled the dice. Again he gets credit for even doing it but it's not a replicable thing but a highly unique circumstance.

Outside of that he's done good but I wouldn't say he's done anything worthy of being considered one of the best. He's drafted lots of good players, but he hasn't drafted a #1 star type. He hasn't acquired a #1 star through any other means outside of Kawhi and that was a 1-year rental. The way the NBA works, he's not going to get to any more finals until he can actually get another #1 star. Maybe he will maybe he won't. I certainly think he deserves more time before we judge fully but if we're 5 years down the road and he still hasn't gotten one and the Raptors are just a consistent 45 win team and a 4-8 seed every year then the notion that he's a top 3 GM will seem asinine.

Imagine if Masai had a WaRcHeSt like Trader Danny did...

Has he leaked to the media any updates on the weather in Utah?

[pingpongrac]

He is a good GM. He is only overrated by people who act like he is the best GM.

Best is subjective, I don’t think there’s a clear best, but name me 3 better GMs

Well how are we going to judge it? If we go by how many title winners built then Buford (Spurs), Meyers (Golden State) and Riley (Heat) all have more and a few guys have as many as Ujiri. If we're going by recency then you have to put Horst for the Bucks ahead of him as well.

Then you have to look at context. He built a title winner 1 year. Good for him he deserves credit for that. It was also a weird year with lots of injuries and we all know your Raptors weren't beating a fully healthy Golden State team. He also got Kawhi for way below his value at the time because the Spurs were stubborn and refused to trade Kawhi to California like he wanted. Most teams weren't in a position to take that risk but the Raptors knew that they had to break up the Lowry/DeRozan duo because it wasn't working so they rolled the dice. Again he gets credit for even doing it but it's not a replicable thing but a highly unique circumstance.

Outside of that he's done good but I wouldn't say he's done anything worthy of being considered one of the best. He's drafted lots of good players, but he hasn't drafted a #1 star type. He hasn't acquired a #1 star through any other means outside of Kawhi and that was a 1-year rental. The way the NBA works, he's not going to get to any more finals until he can actually get another #1 star. Maybe he will maybe he won't. I certainly think he deserves more time before we judge fully but if we're 5 years down the road and he still hasn't gotten one and the Raptors are just a consistent 45 win team and a 4-8 seed every year then the notion that he's a top 3 GM will seem asinine.

Toronto has won 63% of their regular season games since Masai took over nearly a decade ago. The only season that they didn't win 48+ games (assuming they beat Houston and/or NYK) was last year when they played the entire season on the road and had their season derailed even further after a COVID outbreak. They've gone to the ECF a couple times and won a Championship while winning 9 series since 2015/16 when they first broke through in the playoffs. It's also weird that you're using the injury excuse for Toronto's Championship as if they didn't have the toughest road to the Finals (the Sixers would have won it all if not for Kawhi's shot and the Bucks would have had a chance too) and other more recent winners didn't have just as much – if not more – injury luck.

Also, how do you expect Masai to draft a #1 option? Prior to this past draft, Toronto only had 1 lottery pick during Masai's tenure – which was acquired in the Bargnani trade and ended up being used as a piece (Poeltl) to acquire Kawhi. Most of the other seasons, Toronto was picking in the late 20s. He found Siakam at 27 (top 10-20 player this season), OG at 23 (premier 3+D wing) and Powell at 46 (became a very good player the past few seasons) while he also snagged the undrafted FVV (all-star with the impact of a top 10-20 player this season). In the 2021 draft, he likely picked this year's ROY who also has a very high ceiling and could become Toronto's #1 or #2 option within a few years. He also turned a UFA Lowry into Achiuwa (arguably a top defender already and shooting 40% on 4 3FGA per game since the ASG) and an expiring Powell into Trent Jr. (good 3+D guard who has the ability to score 30+ points). Toronto is suddenly loaded with young talent after one down year.

Masai's misses in the past 9 years are basically limited to picking Bruno at 20 in 2014 (which shouldn't even be considered a bad thing as a late 1st) and signing a few role players in FA that were taking up ~5% of the cap (Johnson, Baynes and Svi come to mind) plus Carroll (who wasn't even that bad, but never found his game). How many more years of top-tier drafting and roster construction do you need before you've seen enough to consider Masai a top 3 GM?

[Spicy P]

He knows how to identify undervalued talent and has the right developmental staff. He's the perfect GM for NBA markets that free agents avoid.

It's too bad they avoid Toronto, it's a super fun city (4th largest NBA market) with all the big-city trappings and none of the "NYC douche-baggery."

I think the belief that players don’t want to play here is a thing of the past and is overblown. Let’s be real, Kawhi probably would have left any other team that’s not in the state of California and he really didn’t have time to build a connection to the city/organization in just one season. But besides him, the last player to really leave was Chris Bosh 12 years ago. Since then, the Raptors have been able to retain pretty much every player they wanted to keep. Lowry and DeRozan re-signed multiple times. Key guys like Siakam, VanVleet, Anunoby, Ibaka, Valanciunas, Powell, Trent Jr., etc. all re-upped. They haven’t had cap space in a long time to really go after a star player, but I’m sure there would be more interest now that the organization is respectable.

[SelfishPlayer]

He knows how to identify undervalued talent and has the right developmental staff. He's the perfect GM for NBA markets that free agents avoid.

It's too bad they avoid Toronto, it's a super fun city (4th largest NBA market) with all the big-city trappings and none of the "NYC douche-baggery."

I think the belief that players don’t want to play here is a thing of the past and is overblown. Let’s be real, Kawhi probably would have left any other team that’s not in the state of California and he really didn’t have time to build a connection to the city/organization in just one season. But besides him, the last player to really leave was Chris Bosh 12 years ago. Since then, the Raptors have been able to retain pretty much every player they wanted to keep. Lowry and DeRozan re-signed multiple times. Key guys like Siakam, VanVleet, Anunoby, Ibaka, Valanciunas, Powell, Trent Jr., etc. all re-upped. They haven’t had cap space in a long time to really go after a star player, but I’m sure there would be more interest now that the organization is respectable.

There are financial incentives to resigning with your same team. Don't overlook that Kyle Lowry is from Philadelphia, a "cold climate" urban city so Toronto can be appealing. Michael Jordan's parents moved AWAY from Brooklyn New York. Michael Jordan was raised in a typical American town. Big urban cities lost appeal to Americans a very very long time ago in the 60s back when NYC, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Baltimore were the most populated cities. Now it's NY, LA, Chi, and HOUSTON as the most populated US CITIES.

[djsunyc]

He is a good GM. He is only overrated by people who act like he is the best GM.

Best is subjective, I don’t think there’s a clear best, but name me 3 better GMs

Well how are we going to judge it? If we go by how many title winners built then Buford (Spurs), Meyers (Golden State) and Riley (Heat) all have more and a few guys have as many as Ujiri. If we're going by recency then you have to put Horst for the Bucks ahead of him as well.

Then you have to look at context. He built a title winner 1 year. Good for him he deserves credit for that. It was also a weird year with lots of injuries and we all know your Raptors weren't beating a fully healthy Golden State team. He also got Kawhi for way below his value at the time because the Spurs were stubborn and refused to trade Kawhi to California like he wanted. Most teams weren't in a position to take that risk but the Raptors knew that they had to break up the Lowry/DeRozan duo because it wasn't working so they rolled the dice. Again he gets credit for even doing it but it's not a replicable thing but a highly unique circumstance.

Outside of that he's done good but I wouldn't say he's done anything worthy of being considered one of the best. He's drafted lots of good players, but he hasn't drafted a #1 star type. He hasn't acquired a #1 star through any other means outside of Kawhi and that was a 1-year rental. The way the NBA works, he's not going to get to any more finals until he can actually get another #1 star. Maybe he will maybe he won't. I certainly think he deserves more time before we judge fully but if we're 5 years down the road and he still hasn't gotten one and the Raptors are just a consistent 45 win team and a 4-8 seed every year then the notion that he's a top 3 GM will seem asinine.

do you consider gm'ing in every market the same? bc they're not.

[Huskies1947]

It's too bad they avoid Toronto, it's a super fun city (4th largest NBA market) with all the big-city trappings and none of the "NYC douche-baggery."

I think the belief that players don’t want to play here is a thing of the past and is overblown. Let’s be real, Kawhi probably would have left any other team that’s not in the state of California and he really didn’t have time to build a connection to the city/organization in just one season. But besides him, the last player to really leave was Chris Bosh 12 years ago. Since then, the Raptors have been able to retain pretty much every player they wanted to keep. Lowry and DeRozan re-signed multiple times. Key guys like Siakam, VanVleet, Anunoby, Ibaka, Valanciunas, Powell, Trent Jr., etc. all re-upped. They haven’t had cap space in a long time to really go after a star player, but I’m sure there would be more interest now that the organization is respectable.

There are financial incentives to resigning with your same team. Don't overlook that Kyle Lowry is from Philadelphia, a "cold climate" urban city so Toronto can be appealing. Michael Jordan's parents moved AWAY from Brooklyn New York. Michael Jordan was raised in a typical American town. Big urban cities lost appeal to Americans a very very long time ago in the 60s back when NYC, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Baltimore were the most populated cities. Now it's NY, LA, Chi, and HOUSTON as the most populated US CITIES.

In North America Toronto is the 4th largest city now. Behind Mexico city, NYC and LA.

As a Raptor fan from 1995 I totally admit there was a time when the franchise was run terribly and there was a ton of ignorance towards Toronto. Vince also re-signed with us until the trade. To reiterate the post above its been a while since a player has crapped on our city and I think it was a generational thing as an expansion franchise. Now most players understand how great of a city Toronto is - the whole double tax thing is way overblown if you have a good accountant there are creative accounting ways to pay less tax. There are cities with more income tax than Toronto (NYC).
I think the latest hater diatribe against Toronto is Kawhi left. Well yeah he did but it was pretty evident that he wanted to play home in LA - he asked the Spurs to trade him there to begin with. He didn't complain at all during his time here and was actually a part of our community for that one year. Came back in summer a few times to party even after the championship.

In the NBA the biggest destinations are LA and Miami. Every other city has to compete more or less the same way. Toronto is a better city than many of the league's city. There are places like Milwaukee, Detroit, Minnesota, Memphis, Washington, Cleveland, and Boston that can't touch Toronto.

[Madhouse]

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.

...

[SelfishPlayer]

I think the belief that players don’t want to play here is a thing of the past and is overblown. Let’s be real, Kawhi probably would have left any other team that’s not in the state of California and he really didn’t have time to build a connection to the city/organization in just one season. But besides him, the last player to really leave was Chris Bosh 12 years ago. Since then, the Raptors have been able to retain pretty much every player they wanted to keep. Lowry and DeRozan re-signed multiple times. Key guys like Siakam, VanVleet, Anunoby, Ibaka, Valanciunas, Powell, Trent Jr., etc. all re-upped. They haven’t had cap space in a long time to really go after a star player, but I’m sure there would be more interest now that the organization is respectable.

There are financial incentives to resigning with your same team. Don't overlook that Kyle Lowry is from Philadelphia, a "cold climate" urban city so Toronto can be appealing. Michael Jordan's parents moved AWAY from Brooklyn New York. Michael Jordan was raised in a typical American town. Big urban cities lost appeal to Americans a very very long time ago in the 60s back when NYC, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Baltimore were the most populated cities. Now it's NY, LA, Chi, and HOUSTON as the most populated US CITIES.

In North America Toronto is the 4th largest city now. Behind Mexico city, NYC and LA.

As a Raptor fan from 1995 I totally admit there was a time when the franchise was run terribly and there was a ton of ignorance towards Toronto. Vince also re-signed with us until the trade. To reiterate the post above its been a while since a player has crapped on our city and I think it was a generational thing as an expansion franchise. Now most players understand how great of a city Toronto is - the whole double tax thing is way overblown if you have a good accountant there are creative accounting ways to pay less tax. There are cities with more income tax than Toronto (NYC).
I think the latest hater diatribe against Toronto is Kawhi left. Well yeah he did but it was pretty evident that he wanted to play home in LA - he asked the Spurs to trade him there to begin with. He didn't complain at all during his time here and was actually a part of our community for that one year. Came back in summer a few times to party even after the championship.

In the NBA the biggest destinations are LA and Miami. Every other city has to compete more or less the same way. Toronto is a better city than many of the league's city. There are places like Milwaukee, Detroit, Minnesota, Memphis, Washington, Cleveland, and Boston that can't touch Toronto.

.
For an American NBA player being a Piston is better than being a Raptor. Detroit and/or Michigan's taxes are substantially lower. NBA players stay in the house a lot and fly in friends so they don't need to go to night clubs to meet friends in the social media age.

[Parataxis]

He knows how to identify undervalued talent and has the right developmental staff. He's the perfect GM for NBA markets that free agents avoid.

It's too bad they avoid Toronto, it's a super fun city (4th largest NBA market) with all the big-city trappings and none of the "NYC douche-baggery."

Hey now, there's a lot of douche-bags in Toronto as well.

[Huskies1947]

There are financial incentives to resigning with your same team. Don't overlook that Kyle Lowry is from Philadelphia, a "cold climate" urban city so Toronto can be appealing. Michael Jordan's parents moved AWAY from Brooklyn New York. Michael Jordan was raised in a typical American town. Big urban cities lost appeal to Americans a very very long time ago in the 60s back when NYC, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit and Baltimore were the most populated cities. Now it's NY, LA, Chi, and HOUSTON as the most populated US CITIES.

In North America Toronto is the 4th largest city now. Behind Mexico city, NYC and LA.

As a Raptor fan from 1995 I totally admit there was a time when the franchise was run terribly and there was a ton of ignorance towards Toronto. Vince also re-signed with us until the trade. To reiterate the post above its been a while since a player has crapped on our city and I think it was a generational thing as an expansion franchise. Now most players understand how great of a city Toronto is - the whole double tax thing is way overblown if you have a good accountant there are creative accounting ways to pay less tax. There are cities with more income tax than Toronto (NYC).
I think the latest hater diatribe against Toronto is Kawhi left. Well yeah he did but it was pretty evident that he wanted to play home in LA - he asked the Spurs to trade him there to begin with. He didn't complain at all during his time here and was actually a part of our community for that one year. Came back in summer a few times to party even after the championship.

In the NBA the biggest destinations are LA and Miami. Every other city has to compete more or less the same way. Toronto is a better city than many of the league's city. There are places like Milwaukee, Detroit, Minnesota, Memphis, Washington, Cleveland, and Boston that can't touch Toronto.

.
For an American NBA player being a Piston is better than being a Raptor. Detroit and/or Michigan's taxes are substantially lower. NBA players stay in the house a lot and fly in friends so they don't need to go to night clubs to meet friends in the social media age.

Lol ya.. no.. detroit is a terrible city - depress af.