Masai Ujiri was one of the first names that came up after the New York Knicks severed ties with Phil Jackson, but the team is reportedly going to go in another direction.
Both ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne and Bruce Arthur of the Toronto Star are now saying that the Knicks will not request permission to speak with or interview Ujiri.
Per @ramonashelburne & @bruce_arthur, the Knicks are telling teams they're ceasing their pursuit of Masai Ujiri.
— Blake Murphy (@BlakeMurphyODC) June 30, 2017
That’s surprising, especially since the Knicks are being advised by former Raptors executive Tim Leiweke, who hired Ujiri in Toronto. The belief was that the Knicks would use Leiweke to help recruit Ujiri, though there may have been an issue over whether they would need to compensate the Raptors if a deal was reached.
Ujiri joined the Raptors in 2013 after he was named NBA Executive of the Year with the Denver Nuggets. Among the many excellent moves he has made to turn the Raptors into a perennial contender in the Eastern Conference was a seemingly lopsided traded with the — you guessed it — New York Knicks. Shortly after he took over in Toronto, Ujiri unloaded Andrea Bargnani’s contract by trading him to the Knicks for several role players, a 2016 first-round pick and second-round picks in 2014 and 2017. Bargnani ended up being a terrible addition in New York.
With Ujiri’s name reportedly off the list, former Cleveland Cavaliers GM David Griffin may be the most intriguing candidate to fill the void left by Jackson. There have also been rumblings that a famous college coach is interested in the position.
