Raptors interested in Pacers GM Pritchard
The Toronto Raptors asked the Indiana Pacers for permission to interview general manager Kevin Pritchard for their head of basketball operations job, CBS Sports reported Friday.
The Pacers have said they will not grant permission to others teams to interview their employees until after their season is over. The Pacers trail the Miami Heat 1-0 in their best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals series.
Pritchard was the Portland Trail Blazers general manager who went to the Pacers after being recommended by former team president Larry Bird.
The Raptors restructured their front office by moving team president Bryan Colangelo to a corporate role.
The Raptors are in a good position to make their team better because they are performing well financially and are under the salary cap.
The team's ownership group is led by former Staples Center executive Tim Leiweke. He is also president and CEO of Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment.
League sources told CBS Sports that Leiweke would like to pair Pritchard with Oklahoma City Thunder assistant general manager Troy Weaver, whose has been coveted by several teams.
However, the Thunder reportedly will most likely not grant other teams permission to interview Weaver for a lateral move.
The Raptors are also interested in Denver Nuggets general manager Masai Ujiri, the league's Executive of the Year. Yahoo! Sports reported Friday that the Nuggets have given the Raptors permission to interview Ujiri.
