“He’s a mad scientist”: Ujiri praises unconventional Raptors coach Nurse

Toronto Raptors president Masai Ujiri knows that his head coach Nick Nurse isn’t the most conventional leader.

This season, much of the conversation has been about Nurse’s bench usage — or lack thereof. Five Toronto players: Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Scottie Barnes, and Gary Trent Jr. have averaged 34 or more minutes a game, all of which rank top 15 in the league. VanVleet, Siakam, and Anunoby sit 1-2-3 in terms of usage per game across the entire NBA.

But Ujiri doesn’t seem to mind.

“He’s a mad scientist,” Ujiri said about Nurse at the post-trade deadline press conference on Friday. “That’s all I can say. Every day he’s thinking, he lives, he eats, he sleeps, he drinks the game. He’s always thinking of all the things that hopefully can give you an edge to win.”

Ujiri understands the fatigue concerns that come with heavy usage but thinks the experience will be valuable for his team.

“Yes, they have been playing a lot of minutes,” Ujiri added. “Some of it is to put them in those situations because a playoff situation is going to be eventually when these guys play, whether it’s this year or next year, it’s going to be like that. It’s them playing in heavy situations, we have to learn these things. They are young players that have to learn these particular situations.”

The Raptors have responded to Nurse’s strategies with an eight-game winning streak, and at 9-1 are tied for the NBA’s best record over the past 10 games. They currently sit sixth in the Eastern Conference with a 31-23 record.

“Nick is great, and he sees [his vision for the Raptors] big picture,” Ujiri added. “Our goal is to stay the course with this with these guys… I think Nick has done an incredible job with them.”

Ujiri and the Raptors’ management team selected Nurse as the organization’s head coach in 2018. The Raptors are sixth in the NBA in wins over that span, even accounting for a 27-45 finish last season while the Raptors played the entirety of their home schedule in Tampa.

“I’m so proud of these guys,” Ujiri said. “The young guys, the spirit, we go through the tough times with the rookies and the young players on the team. They fight through it. ”

Ujiri added that he’s “very confident” in the winning “mentality” throughout the franchise.

“The team plays with so much passion, and so much energy, and the will to win, [to use] every day to get better,” Ujiri added. “Our organization is just generally like that from top to bottom.”

The Raptors take on the Denver Nuggets on Saturday evening at Scotiabank Arena, with tip-off set for 7:30 pm ET.

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