Toronto Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri claimed in legal papers on Thursday he was assaulted by a security guard after the 2019 NBA Finals, not the other way around, per Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic.
Alan Strickland, the security guard, previously claimed Ujiri hit him trying to access the court after the Raptors defeated the Golden State Warriors in Game 6 of the 2019 Finals at Oracle Arena:
Masai Ujiri’s separate response claimed, “As Mr. Ujiri attempted to enter the court, Mr. Strickland assaulted him, forcefully shoving him back once and then twice. Mr. Ujiri then shoved Mr. Strickland in the chest. Other than the shoves, the two men did not have any further physical contact with each other. The entire encounter between Mr. Strickland and Mr. Ujiri was brief. Mr. Ujiri was eventually escorted to the court where he joined his team, accepted the championship trophy, and gave a live on camera interview.”
Strickland claimed that the Raptors' exec was not wearing visible credentials. Ujiri’s legal response does not elaborate on the subject, but denies the claim in Strickland’s complaint that the Raptors' GM was not wearing visible credentials.
The Raptors defeated the Warriors for their first title in franchise history last season, with Kawhi Leonard winning his second Finals MVP.
So far, this situation between Ujiri and Strickland has been filled with conflicting reports, as these things usually do. Right now, there is no basketball on due to COVID-19. The court has yet to create a schedule for actions like motions to dismiss and discovery deadlines or set a trial date. All parties are requesting a jury trial, per Daniel Kaplan of The Athletic.
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