He said it, meant it all, sorry he did
Toronto Raptors General Manager Masai Ujiri used a profane word during a pregame address meant to pump up a group of Raptors fans outside Air Canada Centre before Saturday’s opening game of the NBA playoffs against the Brooklyn Nets.
“F**k Brooklyn,” Ujiri said to several hundred fans gathered outside the downtown arena for a party and to watch the game on a huge screen above the west entrance.
Ujiri, the NBA’s reigning executive of the year, apologized in a brief news conference at halftime.
“Just trying to get the crowd out there rattled. Wrong choice of words,” he said. “I apologize to kids out there and to the Brooklyn guys. Nothing against them. Just trying to get our fans going. That’s it.”
Asked if the profanity represented his feelings about the Nets, who’ve been accused of tanking in order to face Toronto in the first round, Ujiri said: “You know how I feel. I don’t like them, but I apologize.”
Forward Amir Johnson supported his GM.
“He’s a very passionate man,” he said. “We definitely have his back. I’m with him 100 percent. If he said f * * k them, we all say f**k ‘em.”
Nets forward Kevin Garnett welcomed Ujiri’s bulletin board material.
“It’s all good,” the former All-Star said. “It’s motivation. So keep rooting for the Raptors, keep rooting for the home team.”
The Nets got the last laugh, at least Saturday, beating the Raptors 94-87 to take a 1-0 lead in the best of-seven series.
Unwritten
The Houston Astros have been one of the worst teams in major league baseball over the past three seasons.
It’s only the middle of April, but frustration is already building for Manager Bo Porter.
Houston was already trailing 7-0 in the first inning Friday night at Oakland when Porter took exception to Athletics shortstop Jed Lowrie’s bunt attempt. It was Lowrie’s second plate appearance of the inning, but nothing was said then.
But in the third inning, Astros reliever Paul Clemens tried to hit Lowrie with two inside pitches.
Lowrie flew out to end the inning, then had words for the Astros as they were coming off the field.
Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, who was Lowrie’s teammate in 2012 in Houston, tried to calm Lowrie down. He did, until Porter ran out on to the field, reportedly yelling at Lowrie to “go back to shortstop.”
“I’ve seen crazier things happen than a team come back from seven runs. I don’t know what the big deal is. If they want to hold a grudge, that’s their decision,” Lowrie told reporters. “I just asked Altuve a question in about this tone and Bo came running out of the dugout yelling at me. I just don’t understand why he came out in such a rage. … I just don’t get it. I don’t know what it shows, but not a lot of confidence in his own team. Point blank.”
Houston starter Jarred Cosart, who allowed 7 runs on 3 hits and walked 4 in a third of an inning, said he understood Lowrie’s strategy.
“His explanation was it was the first inning,” Cosart said.
“Personally I think he didn’t want to make two outs in the same inning. But he’s trying to get hits, get on base. From our standpoint, they were up 7-0. I didn’t have a problem with it. I put us in that situation.”
Porter, though, didn’t have much to say after the game, which dropped Houston to 5-12.
“Nothing happened,” the second-year manager said. “The game takes care of itself.”
Looks like Porter has a case of the unwritten rules.
Quote of the day
“It’s frustrating, but whatever. I’m not going to cry about it. We’ve just got to work harder.” Chicago Blackhawks goalie Corey Crawford on Saturday’s 4-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues
Sports, Pages 24 on 04/20/2014