The Toronto Raptors entered this offseason with two significant free agents who have been cornerstones of the franchise’s ascent to a championship in 2019. The first, Kyle Lowry, was expected to leave. He had given the franchise his all and, as the team transitioned to a future-facing outlook, he needed to compete now and made his way to Miami via a sign-and-trade. The second, Masai Ujiri, was much more secretive about his future, with fans hoping the president of the team would return but unsure because he was a highly coveted front office executive by most teams — the Knicks and Wizards had each famously tried to poach him in recent years.
However, on Thursday, word broke from ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that Ujiri was coming back to Toronto, with the Raptors releasing a video featuring Ujiri saying “we will win in Toronto,” that didn’t explicitly say anything about a new contract but was, effectively, the official announcement.
ESPN Sources: Masai Ujiri – architect of the 2019 champions– has agreed to a significant new deal to become Vice Chairman!President of the Toronto Raptors. Ujiri continues as both Raptors top basketball/business executive and a global philanthropist through his Giants of Africa.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 5, 2021
I’ve said it before, and I am saying it again.
We will win in Toronto.
– Masai pic.twitter.com/KJ64UwjZPo
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) August 5, 2021
Ujiri has been with the Raptors since 2013 and is among the most well respected executives in the NBA and is a beloved figure among Raptors fans for his work in constructing the 2019 title team. The fears he would leave for a new challenge persisted for the last two years with his contract ending this year, but ultimately it seems what he’s built in Toronto and the challenge of trying to do it again was too strong for him to look to move on.