Raptors Report Cards: Masai Ujiri

With the Toronto Raptors’ 2014/15 season finishing sooner than predicted, it is time to start looking back at the team’s players, head coach and general manager. We at Raptors Rapture present our 2014/15 report cards. Stay tuned throughout the next two weeks as we analyze each piece of the current team.

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Masai Ujiri entered the summer of 2014 with nothing but praise from fans, players and the coaching staff. The world had just seen the results of some key trades, which led to the Raptors earning a franchise best record and third place in the Eastern Conference. By far the biggest trade that Ujiri manufactured was the one that sent Rudy Gay to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for four key role players.

The 2014/15 season was meant to be the continued ascension of the team Ujiri radically built the year before. He decided to leave the roster largely untouched, to hopefully build on the chemistry that was developed the season prior. The one change Ujiri made was to make the team more lethal offensively. The 2013/14 Raptors were strong defensively, but struggled offensively to find scoring options beyond Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan.

Ujiri’s biggest summer moves were to sign James Johnson and to trade John Salmons for Lou Williams. With Johnson, the Raps gained a defensively conscious player with the ability to score athletically around the hoop or shoot semi-confidently from mid-range. Johnson is a great effort player with a focus on sparking his team, whether it is with a block or a massive dunk. With Williams, the Raptors got the franchise’ first ever Sixth Man of the Year winner. Williams is a spark plug off the bench, with the ability to ignite any game with his offensive chops. Unfortunately, he is not a great defender, but that isn’t the reason he was signed.

Ujiri built a solid team, which started the season with a lot of success. But, even while the team was winning consistently, it was clear that defence was an issue. The Raptors were ranked 20th or worse defensively throughout the season. Thus, Ujiri’s biggest mistake came at trade deadline, when he elected to avoid making any roster moves. He put confidence in his team, which proved to backfire royally.

When the Raptors’ offence started to struggle after the All-Star Game, the team fell apart. The Raps were reliant on strong offence to support weak defensive efforts. Ujiri failed to see the extent of this dependance. This all came to a boil during the playoffs, when the Raptors were easily swept by the Washington Wizards.

Still, Ujiri did many good things this year. He built a roster that won 49 games, besting last season’s mark. Plus, the team struggled with injuries to Lowry and DeRozan, which is obviously out of his control. Overall, Ujiri should still be trusted as the man who has the best chance of bringing a championship roster to Toronto.

Overall: B

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