Last night, the Knicks defeated the Raptors on the floor. Behind the scenes too, the match took place since ESPN reports that the Toronto franchise counterattacked legally.
It has been months since James Dolan's franchise filed a complaint against the Canadian club. New York accuses Ike Azotam, the former head of video and player development for the Knicks, of stealing “scouting reports, including frequency of use of gaming systems, a preparation book and a link to third-party licensed software” when he joined Darko Rajakovic's staff during the summer.
On the Raptors side, we have already replied that if Ike Azotam did use his account with the Knicks to transfer documents when taking up his new position within the Toronto club, he only recovered data generally accessible to all franchises in the league. Nothing strategic or sensitive, then.
However, the Knicks do not intend to let go of the matter, as they refused arbitration from Adam Silver, ensuring that the “commissioner” was biased, being close to Larry Tanenbaum, the boss of the Raptors !
A simple publicity stunt?
On the Toronto side, we assure that this case is only a publicity stunt for New York, the Knicks not really seeking compensation but rather to keep the case in court “as long as possible because this lawsuit attracts publicity and aims to harm the Raptors, its coach and members of its staff. »
Between the lines, the Raptors accuse James Dolan, who no longer wants to participate in meetings between owners, nor in the various committees, of using this complaint to try to settle scores with Larry Tanenbaum, the president of the NBA steering committee, as well than with Adam Silver, the league's “commissioner”.
In Toronto, it is explained that “If the Knicks were truly concerned about the use of confidential and proprietary information, they would have accepted the Raptors' invitation to cooperate in conducting an immediate and thorough investigation. And they would have sought an immediate solution from the commissioner – who could have ruled before the start of the season – rather than getting bogged down in long legal procedures. »
The Canadian club also threatens for the first time to file a complaint for defamation against the Knicks.
