Knicks and Raptors Settle Lawsuit: Close Case Over Data Theft

The New York Knicks and the Toronto Raptors have reached an agreement to voluntarily dismiss a 2023 lawsuit related to the alleged theft of thousands of confidential files, according to a court document filed on Friday. Spokespersons from both teams issued the same statement:

The Knicks and Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, owners of the Raptors, have withdrawn their respective claims and the matter is resolved. The parties are focused on the future.

Joint statement from the teams

The Knicks filed the lawsuit in August 2023, seeking more than $10 million in damages. The team alleged that the Raptors recruited Ikechukwu Azotam, who worked for New York from 2020 to 2023, and instructed him to provide a large amount of internal information after Toronto began recruiting him in the summer of 2023. The Knicks argued that this effort was aimed at giving the Raptors a competitive advantage. The Knicks specifically alleged that Azotam, who worked for the team as an assistant video coordinator and then as director of video/analytics/assistant player development, sent the Raptors thousands of confidential files, including play frequency reports, a preparation book for the 2022-23 season, scouting video files, and opposition research. The Knicks alleged that Azotam did it at the request of the Raptors, who, according to them, were trying to “organize, plan, and structure the new coaching and video operations staff,” according to the August 2023 complaint. The Raptors, Azotam, Toronto coach Darko Rajaković, player development coach Noah Lewis, and 10 “unknown” employees were named as defendants in the lawsuit. In a court document from October 2023, the Raptors called the Knicks’ accusations “baseless” and a “public relations stunt.” The Raptors argued that the “alleged ‘data theft’ involved little more than publicly available information, compiled through public sources easily accessible to all NBA members.” The Raptors repeatedly asked NBA commissioner Adam Silver to intervene and resolve the dispute, and a judge in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in Lower Manhattan agreed. The case was voluntarily dismissed with prejudice, which means it is permanently dismissed.