The president of the Toronto Raptors, Masai Ujiri, made it clear that his relationship with Kyle Lowry has not been tarnished after DeMar DeRozan’s trade. Meanwhile, he understands the frustration of his point guard.
Recently, Raptors star Lowry conducted an interview with ESPN and said he felt “betrayed” after his best friend’s trade to the San Antonio Spurs. However, Ujiri also told ESPN that he had never done Lowry any wrong.
He had only done his job and, in his opinion, had created a trade that made sense from a sporting point of view. If this was a mistake, one could blame him for it, says Ujiri. Such deals are never easy, but they are part of the business: “In a trade it is difficult to communicate with the players. We need to talk to the agents and we can’t just say, “Oh, you’re traded, by the way.”
In terms of sport, the trade has paid off so far. The current Raptors balance of 21-5, the best of the entire league, proves Ujiri right. Moreover, his relationship with Lowry has not changed since that decision. “We’ve never had a confrontation, I’ve never done him any wrong. It’s just the choices that are made, we have to get through them. And I know what Kyle is like, to be honest, I love him infinitely,” the Raptors president explained.
The changes in the team seem to have done Lowry some good, but he is currently setting a new career record with over 10 assists per game. Nevertheless, the 32-year-old only said of his relationship with Ujiri: “He is the president. And that’s it. I mean, I come here and do my job. … He does his job, I do my job, right?”
Lowry and DeRozan had played together at the Raptors from 2012 to 2018, and the Raptors have set several new records, including last season. But in the playoffs the duo failed again and again and in summer Ujiri broke the core. DeRozan was sent to the Spurs together with Jakob Pöltl for Leonard and Danny Green.