TORONTO — Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri held a 40-minute session with the media Tuesday, covering a wide range of topics including the need for a “culture change,” the shifting landscape of the NBA and more.
Here’s a breakdown of some of what Ujiri said and what it could mean:
Changes are on the horizon
The most succinct point that Ujiri seemed to want to drive home over his long discussion with reporters was that changes are coming.
Using the term “culture reset” often, Ujiri was adamant that just reaching the post-season and winning a round or two is no longer good enough.
“After that performance we need a culture reset here” Ujiri said. “We need to figure it out. Yes, there’s been some success, but at the end of the day we are trying to win a championship here. To me, making the playoffs is nothing. That was back in the day. Now we have to figure out how we can win in the playoffs.”
What those changes are, however is anyone’s guess. Ujiri was very clear that it’s impossible for him and his staff to make any decisions at the moment, even calling the little pow-wow he was holding “BS.”
However, even though he was rightly effusive about his team’s summer plans, the fact Ujiri mentioned anything to do with the “culture” of his club is very telling that he’s definitely looking to shake things up, even if he’s not sure yet how to do it.
Raptors looking to modernize their offence?
Even though Ujiri doesn’t know — or wasn’t willing to let on — his plans yet, he still made hints as to what this “culture reset” could be, and it seems to start with how the team plays.
“We’ve done it the same time over and over again, is it going to work the next time? We have to figure that out,” said Ujiri. “The one-on-one basketball we play, we have to question that, we have to really look at it. Look at the league and evaluate the way we play and [ask], ‘Is this working?’”
The Raptors this season saw 742 of their possessions this season end up in isolation plays, sixth-most in the NBA. This isn’t inherently bad as they ended up scoring a league-best 48 per cent of the time on these types of plays. However what is concerning was the Raptors’ league-worst 18.5 assists per game they averaged, which is likely the point of concern Ujiri is speaking of.
It’s a point well made, too. As the NBA has changed, whipping ball-movement has become among the most effective ways to get a defence to shift and find an open look, resulting in a lot of assists for teams (hence assists being a strong measurement of an effective offence).
This style of play will also lead to a lot of threes, something Ujiri isn’t thrilled about but recognizes that’s the way the league is going.
“All I know is what we have been doing has not worked,” Ujiri said. “And I have to look at that, we have to take a serious look at that. Because we’ve tried it and tried it and tried it and tried it and you know what, it hasn’t taken us to the highest level.”
Toronto’s notoriously known as a long-two, mid-range shooting team, a style that served them well on their way to back-to-back 50-win seasons but has left them exposed in the playoffs. If Ujiri’s really serious about changing culture there’s no better place to start than to hop into the time machine and join this era of basketball instead of trying to win with an archaic style.
Dwane Casey’s future seems to be safe
Of course, a lot of how a team plays is determined by how the coach wants his team to play, and under Dwane Casey there are legitimate questions over whether he can get this Raptors squad playing the uptempo, ball-moving, three-point chucking style that looks like the blueprint for success.
Ujiri, however, has faith in his coach, for now.
“My short answer to that, honestly, is yes there is commitment, but we are all going to question ourselves,” Ujiri said of Casey’s future. “We are all going to seriously question ourselves now, and figure out the best way to do it
“Because coach Casey has been a phenomenal part of our success here, you know, and in some ways we owe that to him. But I’ve told him that we all have to be accountable. I haven’t slept, and I know he hasn’t slept too, because we’re thinking of ways that we can continue to make these things better, and make the right decisions.”
This is rather curious because optics would suggest Casey probably should be relieved of his duties, if only to get a new voice in there for the sake of the “culture reset.” That Ujiri is essentially endorsing Casey, however, speaks to the trust he has for him and, perhaps for sticking with a consistent program even if it’s going to be altered.
Ownership onboard with any direction Ujiri decides to go
The best indicator of a major overhaul on the way Ujiri hinted at was probably that ownership is good regardless the direction the Raptors president steers his ship in.
Ujiri said MLSE is prepared to pay the luxury tax should Ujiri want to bring the band back together or go after high-profile free agents, but, more interestingly, he was also given the blessing to dismantle the team entirely and try again from scratch.
“No, we’re not afraid of that at all,” Ujiri said of potentially tearing down the team’s core. “Because it might be the right way to go, you never know. We’re really going to sit down and evaluate everything, and we’ll see where we go from there.”
He was just pointing out an option, but it seemed clear Ujiri isn’t above blowing up his core and tanking to try to get back in position to win a championship again.
This is definitely the most extreme of the “culture reset” scenarios, but it may also be the wisest.
With LeBron James at 32 years of age and still at the peak of his abilities it’s tough to see the Raptors doing anything but losing to him next season or the season after that. But what about four seasons from now? Five seasons? LeBron’s human (we think) after all, and he has to slow down at some point and when that happens the Raptors could be there ready to pounce because of what Ujiri set in motion this summer.
Almost everything the team does will depend on Lowry
What it will all boil down to for Ujiri and the Raptors’ front office is the Lowry decision. He’s the domino that must fall first before any other real decision can be made.
“That’s why I say, honestly, it’s stupid for me to talk here and say this is what I’m going to do and all of a sudden Kyle says he’s not coming back here, as an example,” Ujiri said. “It’s our jobs to try and get Kyle to come back and do it the best way that we possibly can. We want him back, he’s been a huge part of the success here, but what is to say Kyle doesn’t call me five days from now and says, ‘You know what, I’m not coming.’ Then whatever I’ve said here doesn’t mean anything.”
The Lowry conundrum is particularly tricky. With his impending free agency the Raptors would, ideally, like a decision made rather soon because he will set up their entire off-season.
Everything from their draft day decisions — which is before free agency opens — to the 12th man on the bench comes down to whether or not the Raptors will want to pay the five-year maximum contract you can safely assume a player of Lowry’s calibre will be seeking.
So as much power as Ujiri has, in actuality, he’s pretty much handcuffed because he doesn’t know what his best player’s going to do yet.
No wonder he prefaced his entire media availability as total “BS.”
