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HBO's "Real Sports" Profiles Masai Ujiri's Commitment To Africa

Tuesday night's episode of HBO's "Real Sports" includes a 20-minute segment featuring Raptors President of Basketball Operations Masai Ujiri and his commitment to growing the sport in Africa. The episode will air at 10pm Eastern, just two hours after the Raptors tip off their 2019 NBA title defense at 8pm vs. the Pelicans. Noteworthy revelations in the piece include:

  • Ujiri flew to Zaria, Nigeria, in August with the Larry O'Brien trophy, where he received a "hero's welcome."
  • NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said of Ujiri's commitment to grassroots hoops in Africa, "No one comes close to the missionary zeal that Masai brings to the table." Silver said that with Ujiri's urging, the league has made Africa one of the league's top priorities.
  • Late in the segment, Ujiri and Silver address the confrontation between the Raptors exec and a sheriff's deputy at Oracle Arena after the Raptors clinched the title in Game 6. Ujiri admits that the incident tainted the championship celebration for him. Silver: "It's part and parcel of what comes with someone who is living on the edge a bit and is hard-wired to sort of march forward with incredible energy. I have no doubt that we'll work through it and he'll overcome it. I think a lesson is learned as well for him, without assigning culpability or blame to anyone. As a leader, those are the kinds of situations he needs to learn to avoid."
  • Ujiri, the first African exec to lead a North American team in a major sport to a title, says that in '10 he was willing to turn down the Nuggets' offer to make him their president of basketball operations if they did not give him an extra $50,000, "not for him, but to fund his camps back home in Nigeria." He was asked if he was willing to say no to the deal if he was not given that sum. After he answered yes, the Nuggets said, "OK," and hung up. They then called him back four minutes later agreeing to that condition and making him their president of basketball ops.

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