The head of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment spoke to reporters Friday after the Toronto Raptors’ parent company parted ways with vice-chairman and president Masai Ujiri.
Ujiri joined the team’s front office in 2013 and led the NBA’s sole Canadian franchise to its first-ever championship in 2019.
Here’s what MLSE president and CEO Keith Pelley said at the news conference:
1:26 p.m. How long will it take to find a replacement?
“I think the urgency is to find the right person, right? So if we are able to find the right person next week, fantastic. If that is next month, that’s okay too. And if it’s in two months, that’s okay. That’s our number one priority: finding the right person that can get us back to contending and winning championships.”
1:20 p.m. - Pelley addresses culture built by Ujiri
“Let’s give Masai tremendous accolades for creating a brand and a culture. But the testament to that brand and the testament to a culture is how it lives once that individual is gone.
“I believe that the culture and the brand that he has created will flourish because that’s the way that he would have wanted it to flourish. But when you create a brand, when you create a culture, if it is mitigated when that individual is no longer involved, then the culture and the brand has not been created in the right way.
“And I believe that the way that he has built the brand and the way that he has created the culture is something that we as an organization at MLSE cherish and need now to build upon, and that will be something critical for the next president.”
1:17 p.m. - ‘This was my decision’
Pelley was asked if it was his decision to part ways with Ujiri or Edward Rogers’, the executive chairman of Rogers Communications, which owns 75 per cent of MLSE.
“This was my decision, supported by the board.”
1:16 p.m. - Masai was told about the decision earlier this month
“We talked earlier at the beginning of this month. I think Masai is a professional and so he took it as such,” Pelley said, when asked how Ujiri took the news of the leadership change.
“And I think that Masai, no doubt, will be speaking in the coming days, and you can ask him that question directly.”
1:15 p.m. - General manager Bobby Webster will be considered to replace Ujiri
“Bobby will be a candidate, and we’ve already talked about that. So he will be interviewed, and I think the president of an NBA franchise is always appealing. So I don’t think that we will have any challenges whatsoever.”
1:13 p.m. - Raptors will seek to replace Ujiri
Unlike the recent departure of Toronto Maple Leafs President Brendan Shanahan, who Pelley previously said is not being replaced, MLSE will look to find a new head of the Raptors.
“Now the question that has come over and over again is: we didn’t bring in a new president for the Toronto Maple Leafs, but we are bringing in a new president for the Raptors. What is the difference?
“You may remember that during the news conference just a month ago, I talked about there not being a preset formula for structures for teams. Different teams have different structures, different needs, and they’re in different areas of their evolution. And with the Toronto Maple Leafs one game from the conference final, and with Brad Treliving and the team moving forward, we didn’t feel the need for a president of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“With the evolution of where the Toronto Raptors are in the middle of a rebuild, we felt that we needed to bring in a president, and as a result, we will start that search immediately.”
1:11 p.m. - ‘Change is inevitable’
“Change is inevitable, and what we really thought is, with the current status of our team and the foundation that Masai has built, that this was the time to make the change. The roster is in place. All our players are signed at the luxury tax limit. The front office is renewed, including General Manager, Bobby Webster, and we have great coaching stability led by Darko (Rajakovic).”
1:10 p.m. - ‘Why now?’
“So why now? Why the timing now? So Masai and I spoke over a month ago, and he asked that if a change were to happen that it was post draft and that made the most sense not to disrupt the draft process.
“You know, we were holding the ninth pick, a top 10 pick, and, of course, Masai, not only his area of passion, but his area of expertise, he’s prolific when it comes to the draft, and we were grateful to have him as a person with (general manager) Bobby (Webster) leading our draft.”
1:08 p.m. - ‘Today is not an easy day’
“Today is not an easy day, but as you know, change is never easy.”
“Masai Ujiri has had a monumental impact on the Raptors and on our community during his 13 seasons with this organization. His legacy will be indelibly etched in our city in perpetuity, based on him playing such a significant role in bringing the 2019 NBA championship to our city, and also how he transformed our brand and worked through the Raptors to create a connection with so many fans in Toronto.”
