The Raptors have fired President and Vice Chairman Masai Ujiri. The move comes mere hours after the conclusion of the 2025 NBA Draft.
BREAKING: Masai Ujiri is out as Vice Chairman and President of the Toronto Raptors, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/JIXUMUXz55
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) June 27, 2025
Ujiri had been with the Raptors since 2013. He is a former NBA Executive of the Year and was instrumental in helping Toronto win the 2019 NBA Finals. The franchise has been on a decline since winning the title. Ujiri was in the final year of his contract, but it was decided that it would be better to part ways now, rather than in a year. The timing of the announcement coming out of the draft makes it feel like it was related to the picks the team made, but both picks were well-graded by outlets.
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Here is more on why the Raptors fired Ujiri.
Why did Raptors fire Masai Ujiri?
The Raptors won the NBA Finals in 2019. In the six seasons since, Toronto has made the playoffs just twice, and has only won one playoff series.
If the postseason troubles weren’t enough, the Raptors had a bad look in the 2025 NBA Draft. PR has since kicked into high gear to try to rationalize the situation, but when Toronto selected Collin Murray-Boyles with the ninth pick in the draft, the South Carolina prospect was seen shaking his head and then saying a clear expletive on TV. Many interpreted this as the Raptors selecting a player who didn’t want to play for them, but of course, Toronto’s PR department had already stated that the player used the word out of excitement, not anger.
Ujiri only had one year left on his contract, and Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment felt that now was the time to move on and part ways.
Who is Masai Ujiri?
His background was as an international basketball player. He played professionally in Europe for the 1991-1992 season before enrolling in college at Bismark State and Montana State Billings, graduating in 1995. Ujiri never played in the NBA, but returned to international competition in 1996 and played for five years. After retiring from basketball, he became a youth coach in Nigeria.
He met some NBA coaches and execs when accompanying a Nigerian player on a draft tryout. This led to Ujiri becoming an international scout for the Nuggets. After four years, he was hired by the Raptors as their Director of Global Scouting and was promoted to their assistant general manager in 2008.
Ujiri returned to Denver in 2010 as the general manager and executive vice president. He was named the NBA Executive of the Year in 2013, which convinced Toronto to bring him back as its executive vice president and general manager. Ujuiri was promoted to team president in 2016.
