A week after the NBA Finals ended, exactly what happened between Raptors president Masai Ujiri and an Alameda County Sheriff’s deputy is still in question.
The Associated Press reports that Ujiri identified himself to a police officer who was excessively blocking him from the on-court celebrations after the Raptors defeated the Warriors 114-110 at Oracle Arena.
The deputy is considering filing a suit against the NBA, the Toronto Raptors and Ujiri for an injury-causing altercation that occurred at the end of Game 6 of the NBA Finals last Thursday. The police are claiming Ujiri forcefully presented an incorrect badge to the officer and that Oracle Arena footage shows Ujiri punching the deputy with “two fists,” one coming just “underneath his jaw on the left side of his face,” according to police spokesperson Sergeant Ray Kelly.
Multiple eyewitnesses told The Globe and Mail that it started over a credential.
That includes celebrity jeweler and entrepreneur Ben Baller, who was sitting in a front-row seat just outside of where the altercation went down. He claims that Ujiri was trying to join the on-court celebrations when the officer forcefully stopped him and shouted, “I need to see credentials to get on the court.”
Baller said Ujiri seemed to be trying to show his lanyard but couldn’t exactly see what the executive said in response, all while other observers began to shout out who Ujiri was: “That’s the general manager of the Toronto Raptors!” The officer shook his head ‘no’ and while making the first shove said something along the lines of “get away from me.”
A look of “are you joking me?” came across the Raptors president’s face, according to Baller, and then things got out of hand. But, “there is no fist going to his face,” Baller said.
No video has been released but a police spokesman revealed that it was not body-cam footage from the officer – the recording on the body-cam reportedly cut out as soon as the officer was struck – but arena cameras that caught the scene.
Police say the officer involved is on a leave of absence, suffering from a concussion and jaw injury as a result of the incident.
The scuffle is under investigation by the Sheriff’s Office and the Oakland Police Department with expectations to file a report with the District Attorney’s office. It will then be decided whether or not this was a misdemeanor of felony offense.
The officer’s lawyer made a point to say that any claims of the incident involving race is unfair and that the officer’s family is African American. “This case is about credential versus no credential. Not race,” the lawyer said.
According to Sgt. Kelly, a portion of the investigation will try to figure out whether or not Ujiri was issued the correct credential for the NBA Finals. And if he was, why wasn’t he wearing it?