THE NATIONAL Basketball Association’s New York Knicks sued rivals the Toronto Raptors in Manhattan on Monday, accusing the Raptors’ new coaching staff of hiring a “mole” who gave the team their scouting reports and other confidential material.
The Knicks accused their former video, analytics and player-development assistant Ikechukwu Azotam, who left the team last week, of stealing thousands of proprietary files and forwarding them to the Raptors.
The Raptors hired Darko Rajakovic, previously an assistant coach with the NBA’s Memphis Grizzlies, as their head coach in June.
The Knicks first hired Mr. Azotam as a video coordinator in 2020. The lawsuit said Mr. Azotam was recruited by the Raptors starting in June and told the Knicks he had received a job offer from them in late July.
The Knicks requested an unspecified amount of damages and asked the court to permanently block the Raptors and Mr. Azotam from misusing their trade secrets. — Reuters
