9:05 am: The Raptors have put out a press release officially confirming that they’ve parted ways with Ujiri.
“During his 13 seasons with the Raptors, Masai has helped transform the organization on the court and has been an inspirational leader off it,” MLSE president and CEO Keith Pelley said in a statement. “He brought an NBA Championship to Toronto and urged us to believe in this city, and ourselves. We are grateful for all he has done and wish him and his family the very best. As we plan for the franchise’s future, and its return to the NBA Playoffs, a search for the successor as president of the Raptors, led by CAA Executive Search, will begin immediately.”
According to the announcement, the Raptors’ other top executives, including Webster, remain in place and have received contract extensions.
“We are confident that the Raptors organization, under the guidance of Bobby and his team, is in a great place,” Pelley continued. “They have a plan in place for next season and beyond as the team continues its rebuild, and we have confidence in their ability to execute and ultimately, to excel. We feel the team is in a strong, stable place, and we believe the addition of a new president will continue to move the Raptors forward, towards our next NBA championship.”
8:11 am: Longtime Raptors president and vice chairman Masai Ujiri is leaving the franchise, according to Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter links), who reports that the two sides have decided to part ways with Ujiri entering the final year of his contract.
There were some warning sides that Ujiri and the Raptors might be headed toward a split at some point, but it’s a little surprising that it’s happening right before free agency begins next week and the morning after the two-day NBA draft, notes Josh Lewenberg of TSN.ca (Twitter link).
Last fall, Rogers Communications bought out BCE (Bell)’s stake in Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, the parent company of the Raptors. Previously, Rogers and Bell had each owned 37.5% of the company, but that deal gave Rogers majority control.
Reporting in the wake of that move noted that Ujiri and Rogers chairman Edward Rogers III have had a “strained relationship” in the past. The Rogers chairman reportedly opposed the terms of the contract extension that Ujiri signed with the club in 2021.
According to Ian Begley of SNY.tv (Twitter link), rival teams have speculated for months that the ownership change might eventually lead to Ujiri exiting the franchise. Some rival executives had described Ujiri as “hard to deal with,” citing his ego, according to Lewenberg (Twitter link). The 54-year-old is reportedly making $15MM per year, Begley adds.
Marc Stein reported in May that the Hawks were interested in having Toronto’s longtime president of basketball operations run their front office. It’s unclear if he actually interviewed, but the fact that Ujiri was cited as a potential candidate was certainly noteworthy.
It’s also worth pointing out that the Raptors have largely struggled over the past half-decade, missing the playoffs in four out of the past five years. Ujiri acknowledged the team was in rebuilding mode last fall, but after going 30-52 in 2024/25 and making a major trade for Brandon Ingram in February, he said in April he was determined to bring Toronto another championship.
After starting his career as a scout, Ujiri worked his way up to assistant general manager with the Raptors in 2008 before leaving to become the GM in Denver in 2010. He was named Executive of the Year with the Nuggets in 2013, then returned to Toronto as executive vice president.
Ujiri bolstered his reputation as one of the NBA’s top executives when he built the Raptors team that captured the franchise’s first-ever NBA title in 2019. Toronto won between 51 and 59 games each season from 2015/16 through 2019/20, advancing to at least the semifinals of the Eastern Conference in each of those five years. The final piece of the puzzle was a bold move to trade for San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard, who was entering the final year of his contract and only spent one season in Toronto.
Ujiri was promoted to president and vice chairman in 2021, with Bobby Webster, Toronto’s general manger since 2017, having focused more on running the team’s day-to-day operations in recent years. Webster will likely lead the basketball operations department for now.
As for Ujiri’s next move, it’s unclear whether or not he’ll seek a new position with an NBA franchise in the short term. Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter link) notes that an executive from another team told him Ujiri has aspirations beyond running a team, including focusing on charity and political work.
Wowwwwew
I wonder where he goes next?
Atl, with Giannis to follow
Giannis is going to Boston for Brown Hauser and picks
Giannis wants to go to a team with a shot not one who is looking to cut payroll for one year
Your response tells me you don’t know anything beyond the surface of what the Celtics are doing and you don’t know much about the penalties involved in being in the second tax apron.
The Celtics traded those players away for multiple reasons not just to “shed salary”.
Now that Boston is out of the second apron they actually have the ability to make big trades.
If Giannis wants to win Boston isn’t a bad place to start.
I know Giannis wants to go to a contender if he isnt staying in MIL. Why would he want to leave one team on a one year pause to go to another one? Giannis and white arent competing without Tatum…
Delusional lol
Im aware he’s probably not going anywhere.
All I know is that wherever Masai ends up, the chances of Giannis landing there skyrocket
Wow, that came out of nowhere.
Raptors outlook is bleak. Don’t blame him for wanting to leave. Then again, whose fault is that?
What are you talking about? The team is pretty young and they have all their future firsts. The Raptors are in an enviable position compared to teams like the Bucks, PHX, Was, SAC, etc. They’re probably a top 6 team next year.
Top 6 in the east? Congratulations…I guess? And if they’re going to be so good how valuable are those first rounders?
Scottie Barnes is their best player. How many playoff teams is he even cracking their starting 5? The list is not long. They are hemming and hawing over Poetl. They are trying to upgrade by trading a FRP for the Celtics 3rd or 4th best player. Things in Toronto have gone cold…
Every league would like Barnes on their roster. You’re not entirely wrong though, as he should not be a number one option. He’d make a decent number two and an excellent number three option on a top contender.
The only bleak thing is Lebron’s chances at another ring
Huh? Who said anything about LeBron lol. If anything his chances are looking better with these reports about Luka improving his fitness, but not sure how it’s relevant to the cRaptors
Learn about basketball. You might like it.
I see I touched a nerve lol. The truth is usually the most painful…
That disgusting roster thats somehow both in the 2nd apron and the top of the lottery odds
Wow. He fit so well in Toronto — different country, unique financial challenges due to Canadian dollar, taxes, etc.
He’ll be difficult to replace.
Probably couldn’t handle the durka takeover like every other cdn.
The what?
Raptors making the Top 10 greatest betrayals in NBA history list
Some team probably threw a bunch of money at him to leave and raptors refused to counter the money.
its well known that new majority ownership has not been a fan of Ujiri for a long while now. i had assumed it was overblown but here we are.
I remember some team was looking at him for their GM spot. Forgot which team but he will get a job.
The Knicks badly wanted to hire him away. It was the Wizards though in 21 that offered him a big deal and forced TOR to pay him huge amounts on an extension to stay
This is crazy. He’s going to be with a new team by Monday.
How guys like Joe Dumars and Nico Harrison have jobs or get new opportunities is beyond me. I tell ppl I could do their jobs and they laugh, but I really think I could do a better job than them and the majority of ppl on here could and would be willing to do it at a fraction of the pay. I’m not saying NBA teams should just hire someone off the streets, but you see it all the time in sports where terrible execs continue getting opportunities bc of connections.
You’re nothing compared to Joe Dumars, Matt.
I might live in a van down by a river and not be Joe Dumars, but at least I’m not a dog f@cker
Fck”Madden Ultimate Team”
Get your mind right, Matthew… Good thing you’re not a GM at all with that thinking
Wishful thinking here. But if there were any reservations about the new Lakers ownership and their current front office structure, a talented GM like Ujiri doesn’t become available that often.
Probably too soon and with Jeanie Buss still entrenched in the organization and with her affinity for Rob Pelinka, I will hold off any hope of this occurring.
One can dream though…..
What did he do after the raps title ? …
this is wild. depending on how this shakes out, they will regret this eventually – sooner if he goes somewhere and Giannis follows. like, going forward, if you’re a free agent, you have to be skeptical about Toronto as a place to sign. gut feeling says they put in a Rogers patsy to run the show as an eventuality.
He’s a very good GM. The way in which he is covered: hints that he’s some sort of oracle, I don’t know if I believe that, but an architect of a team that has a philosophy that he believes, makes him an asset for teams looking to set themselves apart during a moment when its difficult to execute with a more punitive salary structure.
I would imagine Masai comes with baggage and his own way of doing things. This article comprises the fact that the movement within franchises happens above our ears and eyes. Masai didn’t get along with one of the power brokers that got more power. We don’t have to illustrate that Masai may be held to a different standard than his peers within those circles.
A franchise that cedes power and control to Masai will be well served, but a franchise looking to make a splash by making the big hire, will have an uphill climb here. I am not sure how much better Masai is than his peers, he’s made some moves that are really head scratching to me, Ingram being most notable.
The teams minority owner aquired a majority stake. They’ve been doing the same with all the professional teams, Masai was the last to go after they did the same with the Leafs and TFC president’s.
The Ingram trade was indefensible at the time, but he’ll still get another shot. He’s been good at finding good-great players from places you don’t usually find them, like Van Vleet, Siakam, Anunoby, etc. Wonder if he’d go back to the Nuggets.
I would be surprised if he returned to Denver. The Kroenkes aren’t typically willing to pay much for executive salaries.
He’s going to the highest bidder. I wouldn’t be surprised if a team like the Clippers gave him like $25M a year.
Nobody in Canada is immune from being Roger’d
Yet Kerr keeps his job. I hate this world.
Out of nowhere? Ujiri is (was) in the middle of a team building process; really his first attempt at building a team from the ground up. He’s a smart guy, with a good eye for talent, but with some different ideas on roster construction. I was interested in seeing how it would turn out. Now, I guess, we’ll never know.
Is this because their first round pick could be seen mouthing the f word when they selected him?
Ridiculous. That has to be the hardest gm job trying to get players to move to Canada.