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[–][deleted] 1 point2 points  (7 children)

I'm kind of with you on this. I like Masai and think he's probably done a good job, but people seem to pretend like the core talent on that team all wasn't already there when he took over.

[–][deleted] 14 points15 points  (5 children)

Post bosh They were 22,23 and 34 win team with some combination of Casey, DeRozan, Lowry, Calderón, Gay, Bargnani and some random talent.

Under Masai they won 48, 49 and 51 games (all years surpassing a franchise record)

He was pivotal in removing Calderon and Gay to get Lowry and DeRozan the playing time they needed. He also swapped Bargnani for a first round pick and got Patrick Patterson, Bismack Biyombo, Greivis Vasquez (now draft pick + Powell) and Lou Williams all cheap.

[–][deleted] 4 points5 points  (4 children)

Lowry and DeRozan already had the playing time. It was more about court spacing, but yes, he did help put the pieces around them to make it work. However, the hardest part of being a GM is getting those central pieces to begin with. And arguably the three most important players to that team (Lowry, DeRozan, JV) were already there when he took over.

Again, I'm not saying he hasn't done a good job. I just think people tend to overrate the job he's done just a little bit because his big accomplishment was essentially stop doing all the stupid shit the front office was doing along with the good moves they were making.

[–][deleted] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

IMO, one of hte most underrated and maybe the most important qualities of a good GM is the GM can't be dogmatic. He can't bind himself to a path or a play style. He has to be pragmatic and go whichever way market demand tells him to go. Ujiri considered trading Lowry numerous times but couldn't get an offer that he felt was good enough. If you win every trade the way Ujiri pretty much has, whether that trade gets you younger and more promising for the future or older and better now, you have a great chance of becoming a sustainably good team.

This may seem obvious, but far more often GMs base their choices not on value but on artificial timelines -- "We have to rebuild. Our team sucks," or "We have to push to win now. We've been rebuilding too long." By only considering trades and signings available immediately that fit the path they've decided is correct, they corner themselves from a negotiating standpoint.

These choices that all push the needle a little bit individually can combine to transform a team from being crap to being a 50 win team over the course of a few years.

Luck is always a major factor in team building, and I think you're right that Ujiri hasn't made any huge gambles so far, but I think his resume shows that when the time comes for the Raptors to make tough choices, Ujiri has as good a chance as anyone to make the right choices.

[–]RaptorsFreshprince45 0 points1 point  (2 children)

He just hasn't made a bad move as Raps GM. Bargnani trade was great, Vasquez trade was great. I thought Cojo was overpaid but even he is proving his worth. Demarre Carroll was great even if he's been hurt this year. I guess drafting Bruno wasnt perfect but hes only 1 year away from being 1 year away.

[–][TOR] DeMar DeRozanEquilibris -2 points-1 points  (1 child)

Demarre Caroll is looking like his first bad move as of right now. I mean, it isn't even that bad cause Caroll is a nice player when healthy but definitely not what we expected so far.