Toronto (Canada), Apr 21 (EFE).- The Toronto Raptors fired this Friday Nick Nurse, the coach with whom they won the NBA championship in the 2018-2019 season, a few days after the Canadian team ran out of the option to play the “playoffs”.
Toronto Raptros president Masia Ujiri announced Nurse’s firing in a statement noting that he has been relieved of his duties.
Ujiri did not say who will replace Nurse but said it is an opportunity to “restart” the team and win another championship.
“The decision to make a change like this is never easy or taken lightly, especially when you are someone who has been an integral part of this franchise’s greatest accomplishments and has been a steady leader through some of its most difficult times. Ujiri explained.
Nurse was hired in 2013 by the Raptors as an assistant coach and in 2018 he became the team’s top manager.
That same season, the Raptors, who had Spanish players Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka in their ranks as well as Sergio Scariolo as assistant coach, won the NBA championship.
With that victory, Nurse became the ninth coach to win the NBA championship in his first season as a team’s head coach.
The Raptors finished this regular season with 41 wins and 41 losses, below expectations, but with a place in the “play-in” to try to access the playoffs.
Last week, the Raptors lost that opportunity when they were defeated at home by the Chicago Bulls in a game that the Toronto team led by 19 points in the third quarter.
Nurse has been linked with the Houston Rockets’ coaching job although he declined to confirm his future plans during his season-ending press conference last week.
