Masai Ujiri crossing the border to save the Knicks is an event the NBA would see value in, according to a team executive.
“They look at him as the chosen one,’’ the executive said.
He would never admit it, but it makes sense that NBA commissioner Adam Silver, who grew up a Knicks fan and has the league office in New York, would prefer arguably the league’s most astute executive running a centerpiece franchise that has fallen on hard times. The Knicks (6-21) have posted the NBA’s worst winning percentage since 2000 and are on pace to miss the playoffs a seventh straight season.
Ujiri, who built the Raptors team that won its first championship last June, could have interest because of the exposure New York might bring to his “Giants of Africa” foundation, Bleacher Report recently reported. A source said the United Nations being in New York potentially would be a bonus for Ujiri, who is from Nigeria.
In unreleased footage of Dan Klores’ acclaimed 10-part documentary series “Basketball: A Love Story,” Ujiri talks passionately about wanting to see African athletes get the coaching needed so the continent can become an NBA pipeline.
James Dolan wanted to make a run at Ujiri after axing Phil Jackson following the 2017 draft, but got turned off by the massive draft compensation that would have been required. There’s speculation that two first-round picks would be demanded by the Raptors, even though Ujiri has just one more season left on his pact after this one.
The NBA has been known to help mediate unorthodox transactions. The Knicks are in position before the trade deadline on Feb. 7 to accrue more draft picks with six of their seven 2019 free-agent signings on expiring contracts. The Knicks have all of their own first-rounders and Dallas’ 2021 and 2023 picks.
If the Knicks don’t show progress the rest of the season, Dolan will likely fire president Steve Mills at season’s end, The Post reported on Dec. 7. It would be ironic if Mills made a trade to acquire a pick that eventually went to Toronto in a Ujiri package.
During the 38-minute sit-down with Klores, Ujiri talked about the secret to his managerial success — first in Denver, then Toronto.
“I think you need to be obsessed to lead effectively,’’ Ujiri said. “As a leader you’re always thinking it, emphasizing it, always daydreaming. It always obsesses you. I watched a Warriors video of their run to The Finals. In my mind, I even asked myself, ‘Why am I watching it? I hate them so much.’ It’s because I’m obsessed with the game.”
Last week, Raptors part-owner Larry Tanenbaum threw cold water on the Knicks rumors, denying Ujiri turned down a recent extension offer to keep his options open.
“We haven’t talked [about an extension] at this point in time, but if you ask him, his intentions are pretty clear,” Tanenbaum said. “Masai has a contract that goes for another two years — this season and next season — so there’s really no need at this point [to re-sign him]. But no team can come to talk to him. That’s tampering. And every owner knows that. Masai is here to stay.”
During the Knicks’ trip out west last week, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he’d “like to see things get turned around there for the sake of the league and the sake of the Knicks fans because they have great fans there.”
For more on the Knicks, listen to the latest episode of the “Big Apple Buckets” podcast: