Former Nuggets scout Masai Ujiri will become the team’s new general manager, according to an NBA source.
The door opened for Ujiri when the Nuggets were unable to reach an agreement with David Griffin, a former Phoenix Suns director of basketball operations.
Ujiri, 39, has been a rising star in NBA executive circles. He worked for four seasons in the Nuggets’ scouting department, which included being named director of international scouting for the 2006-07 season. Prior to that, Ujiri worked as an international scout with the Orlando Magic in 2002-03.
A native of Zaria, Nigeria, Ujiri attended prep school in Seattle, went to junior college in North Dakota and attended Montana State. He played basketball in college and then professionally for six years in Europe.
Want to know more? David Thorpe knows Ujiri well and discussed his career with TrueHoop.
One value he definitely brings is that he knows everybody and has no enemies. That’s how deals get done in the NBA. He’s not out late clowning around. He’s very classy. He values character. And I’d bet that one of the biggest things he brings to the Nuggets right now comes in how the team relates to Carmelo Anthony. It’s interesting that the two finalists for that job — David Griffin and Masai — are both from teams that just lost stars in free agency. Going through that is a great learning experience, with tremendous lessons for how to handle the biggest challenge facing the Nuggets in the year ahead. I’m sure Masai will have a very smart approach to convincing Carmelo to stay. He’ll be really good at that.
If the hire does indeed go through, Ujiri will be the first African-born GM in the NBA.
The first order of business is crystal clear — Ujiri has to convince Carmelo Anthony to stay put.
