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Andrew LopezESPN
President of Toronto Raptors Masai Ujiri issued a statement Thursday afternoon in his first public comments since video footage shows the exchange between Ujiri and a deputy from the San Francisco area sheriff after the clinching game of the NBA Finals last year.
Ujiri begins the statement by thanking everyone who has expressed “disappointment and concern” since the video was released.
“The video unfortunately demonstrates how horribly I was treated last year by a law enforcement officer in the middle of my team, the Toronto Raptors, winning their first world championship. It was an exciting moment of achievement for our organization, for our players, for our city, for our country, and for me personally, saw my professional long journey in the NBA, “writes Ujiri.
“Yet I was sadly reiterated at that moment that despite all my hard work and success, there are some people, including those who would protect us, who will always and only see me as something unworthy of respectively involvement And there is only one dubious reason why that is the case – because I am Black.
“What saddens me most about this ordeal is that the only reason I get the justice I deserve at the moment is because of my success. Because I’m the president of an NBA team, I had access to resources that made it possible for me to claim and fight for my justice.That so many of my brothers and sisters have not had, have not and will not have the same access to resources that ensured my justice.And that is why Black Lives Matter. “
Ujiri completed the statement by saying it was important to continue to ask for justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Elijah McClain and others.
On Tuesday, the day the new video footage was released, Ujiri counted deputy Alan Strickland, who can be seen on the video that shook Ujiri and told him to ‘return the f-up’, then. ‘ t Ujiri tried to gain access to the court.
The Strickland lawsuit, filed in February, alleges that Ujiri attacked him and that as a result of the incident “he suffered injuries to his body, health, strength, activity and person, all of which have caused and continue to cause of complaining mental, emotional, psychological, physical, and nervous pain and suffering. “
Ujiri’s countersuit, which includes the Raptors, the NBA and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment as plaintiffs, states that Strickland falsified the encounter and tried to portray Ujiri as “the initial aggressor and an inherently violent individual.” It calls Strickland’s account “a complete fabrication” that is contradicted by video images.
The Raptors, who improved to 2-0 in the first round of the playoffs against the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday, saw the recordings as a team on Tuesday, according to players.
On Thursday, veterans Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka supported Ujiri again in his fight.
“It [the video] shows why we support it socially [initiatives] that’s going on right now, “Lowry said.
“It shows why we support the Black Lives Matter. It shows why we need to get out and vote. It shows why we need to get these guys to arrest the murderers of Breonna Taylor, because there are cops. like that officer there, who are scumbags, in principle.
Ibaka added that the situation was “sad” because he felt that no one believed Ujiri’s side of the story at first.
“As a Black president in the NBA, as a Black man, it’s hard. As a Black person, you’re up against a white cop, in this country, you know, it’s hard. Nobody will believe you,” Ibaka said.
“Things should never be this way anywhere else. No matter where you come from, whatever your color, things should never be that way. Like I said, if Masai did not have that money or if he did not was the position he is in now he would be guilty.Thank God now that everyone can see what happened that day.This commitment to us to understand this fight is far from over.We need to hold on to each other and we need to do this fight together. “
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