Masai Ujiri will be leaving as Raptors president and vice chairman after spending 12 years with the organization. ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported that Raptors’ ownership group, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, and Ujiri mutually agreed to leave before the last year of his deal in 2025–26.
Ujiri signed with the Raptors in 2013 from his experience as general manager of the Denver Nuggets. He was the first African GM in any of the major North American pro sports leagues and had been NBA Executive of the Year in his last year in Denver.
With Ujiri, the Raptors had their most successful period in franchise history. From 2013 to 2025, the franchise went 545–419 and made the playoffs eight times, including seven straight playoff appearances from 2014 to 2020. They also had five straight 50-win seasons and, most importantly, captured their first-ever NBA championship in 2019.
Ujiri is most remembered for the aggressive trade that brought Kawhi Leonard to Toronto. He traded longtime Raptor DeMar DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl, and a first-round draft pick for Leonard from the San Antonio Spurs in 2018. While Leonard was only signed for one year, the trade was definitely worth it. Toronto beat the Golden State Warriors in the 2019 Finals, and Leonard was Finals MVP.
Since Leonard departed for the Clippers via free agency, the Raptors were competitive for a brief point but have come nowhere close to the same. Core players such as Kyle Lowry, Pascal Siakam, and Fred VanVleet ultimately departed, and the team has not made the playoffs in the last three seasons. The 2024–25 season concluded on a 30–52 record.
The Raptors had also tried to sign Kevin Durant in a huge trade recently, but he signed with the Houston Rockets. But the team possesses a talented and young core of Scottie Barnes, RJ Barrett, Brandon Ingram, Immanuel Quickley, and Jakob Poeltl.
Ujiri’s final actions as president came during the 2025 NBA Draft, when the Raptors drafted Collin Murray-Boyles at No. 9 and Alijah Martin at No. 39. With free agency opening soon, the team will now proceed with a new voice at the helm of the front office for the first time in more than a decade.
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