Toronto Raptors Respond to New York Knicks Proprietary Theft Claims, Hint At Countersuit

The Toronto Raptors appear ready to go on the offensive in the latest developments of their legal battle with the New York Knicks.

The offense between the New York Knicks and Toronto Raptors didn't end at the final buzzer. 

Hours after the Knicks completed a 136-130 victory over Toronto on Monday night, ESPN's Baxter Holmes reported that a court filing from the Raptors tore apart New York's claims of proprietary information theft. 

"The Knicks' allegation of a sweeping conspiracy among Defendants to steal the Knicks' proprietary trade secrets is false," the Raptors said in the filing, per Holmes. "The Knicks would have learned this if had they accepted the Raptors' offer to cooperate in an investigation instead of immediately filing this suit."

Toronto has been flippant of the Knicks' claims before but the new filings hint at attempts to countersue, claiming the Knicks' accusations are a "clear violation of criminal and civil law." Former team employee Ike Azotam and Dario Rajaković, the first-year head coach of the Raptors, are among the defendants listed on the Knicks' lawsuit originally filed over the summer.

The Knicks are pursuing over $10 million in damages in accusing former team employee Azotam of "funneling proprietary information to the Raptors to help them organize, plan, and structure the new coaching and video operations staff." 

Julius Randle (30) drives against Scottie Barnes during Wednesday's game / John Jones, USA TODAY SPORTS

In these legal efforts, Knicks owner and Madison Square Garden Sports/Entertainment chairman/CEO James Dolan has stepped from his spots on numerous NBA Board of Governors committees. The Knicks have also asked that NBA commissioner Adam Silver remove himself from the potential arbitration process, citing his personal and professional relationships with Larry Tanenbaum, the chairman of the Raptors' parent company, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment.

The Raptors claim that Silver's involvement will be used as an excuse if and when judgment comes to pass. 

"Akin to a coach bemoaning an injury to his star player even before the game, the Knicks seek to excuse their inevitable loss on the merits by attacking the integrity of the NBA Commissioner," the Raptors said.

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As they have stated in the past, the Knicks have no intentions of backing down: an MSG Sports spokesperson told All Knicks that "Hopefully the Court will make it clear that Toronto cannot escape the consequence of breaking the law by being a member of the NBA." 

New York and Toronto have met twice this month with the former prevailing in both showdowns. A third is slated for Jan. 20 at Madison Square Garden.