The Story of the Master Builder in the NBA: Goodbye Masai

The Story of the Master Builder in the NBA: Goodbye Masai

Uh today’s not an easy day, but as you know, change is never easy. Uh Messiah Yui has had a monumental impact on the Raptors and on our community during his 13 seasons with this organization. His legacy will be indelibly etched in our city in perpetuity based on him playing such a significant role in bringing the 2019 NBA championship to our city. We owe Messiah a great deal of gratitude and I wish him the very best moving forward. One thing we know, wherever Messiah ends up, he will be successful. The news hit Toronto hard. Messiah Yujiri, the man who built the Raptors into champions, is gone. On June 27th, 2025, his time with the team officially came to an end. In um 12 incredible years, incredible years with uh the Toronto Raptors. And after more than a decade of leadership, risks, and unforgettable moments, it really does feel like the end of something special. Wow. I love you, Toronto. I I love you, Toronto. And and I it’s it’s a great part, great journey in my life, and great things come to an end. When Messiah arrived in 2013, the Raptors were just trying to matter. They were just trying to be relevant and be taken seriously. Sometimes it’s going to be tough. Sometimes it’s going to be hard. Uh but it’s going to take patience. It’s going to take passion, a passion to win. But year by year, move by move, he changed everything. He took a team full of doubt and turned it into one full of belief. He brought a championship to Canada. Canada, the NBA title is yours. The Toronto Raptors are the 2019 NBA champions. Some incredibly brave trades and some super hard decisions. But through it all, Messiah never stopped believing that Toronto could be great. But we wanted to win in Toronto and we were born in Toronto. And because of him, we believe, too. We’ve been growing and tried to prove to the world uh that there’s a meaning to having an NBA team, one NBA team outside, uh the US. This is the story of one of the most influential men in the history of Canadian sports. In the summer of 2013, the Toronto Raptors were a franchise in need of hope. The team had endured years of disappointment. In their first 18 seasons, they had only made five playoff appearances and never advanced past the second round. Stars like Vince Carter and Chris Bosch had left, and the Raptors had become something of an NBA afterthought. Into this bleak landscape though, stepped Messiahi. On May 31st, 2013, he was hired as the Raptors new executive vice president and general manager, replacing Brian Kangelo. Messiah was already respected as one of the league’s rising executives. He had just won the executive of the year in Denver, but more importantly, he had a bold vision for Toronto from day one. He spoke of changing the culture and believing that the Raptors could actually win something in Toronto. But at the end of the day, I’m a basketball guy and I want to put a product out there uh that’s going to compete one day for a championship. Many still doubted the process, but Messiah’s confidence was infectious. It felt like the franchise finally had a leader who refused to accept mediocrity. He wasted no time making his mark. One of his very first moves came in July of 2013, and it sent a clear signal that a new era had begun. He traded away the former number one pick, Andrea Barani, a player who had long underperformed to the New York Knicks. On paper, it wasn’t a glamorous trade. The Raptors received Marcus Cami, Steve Novak, Quinton Richardson, and some draft picks. But to Raptors fans, this was a revelation. Shedding Barani’s hefty contract was a win in itself and the 2016 first round pick that Messiah acquired would later turn into a young center by the name of Yaka Purle. In hindsight, that single trade set off a domino effect that would continue giving for years. It freed Toronto from the weight of a terrible contract and planted the seeds for the future. Seeds that would eventually help the Raptors become champions. Early on, Messiah also made it clear that he was not afraid to take risks or make unpopular decisions. Just months into the job, he nearly traded Kyle Lowry, who was in the last year of his contract at the time. The team had started the 2014 season slowly with just six wins and 12 losses, and rumors began that Larry was headed to the Knicks as part of a rebuild. The trade was reportedly so close that Larry himself expected to be gone. But then something almost cinematic happened. The Knicks owner, James Dolan, killed the deal at the last moment. Not because he didn’t value Larry, but because he didn’t trust the man on the other end of the phone. Dolan remember how Messiah had fleeced the Knicks in the Barani trade and even in an earlier trade back when Messiah was in Denver. So he backed out in a twist of faith. That hesitation saved Kyle Larry for Toronto, keeping a player who would end up becoming arguably the greatest Raptor of all time. What seemed like a failed trade turned into a franchise altering stroke of luck. And it happened because Messiah’s reputation had literally scared off an opposing owner. Toronto fans who were initially anxious about losing Larry took a sigh of relief cuz that moment ended up being a blessing in disguise that helped set the stage for everything to come. As all of this was going on, Messiah was still tinkering with the roster, looking for ways to jump start the team. In December of 2013, he made another significant trade. He sent Rudy Gay, one of the Raptors top scorers at the time, to the Sacramento Kings. In return, Toronto got back a collection of solid role players. John Sammons, Grievous Vasquez, Patrick Patterson, and Chuck Hayes. At first, many people thought this move signaled a rebuild. After all, Gay was a primary scorer, and trading him looked like waving a white flag in the middle of the season. But the effect of the trade was actually the opposite. With Gay gone, the Raptors offense opened up and the team chemistry improved almost overnight. The remaining core led by big juicy bum Larry and a young Demar de Rozan caught fire after that abysmal 6 and12 start. The rappers went on a 42 and22 tear to finish the season rallying together in the absence of their traded star. Messiah had unlocked the team’s potential. Suddenly Toronto was fun to watch again. Full of energy and heart, the 2014 Raptors not only achieved a winning record, they did something no Raptors team had done in 6 years. Clinch a playoff spot. Yes, that’s how bad the Raptors used to be. You could feel the city’s excitement about Toronto finally having a good basketball team. That spring, Jurassic Park, which was the fan zone outside the arena, was filled with a cheering crowd. Toronto fell in a hard-fought sevename series in the first round of the Brooklyn Nets. But the fight that the Raptors showed won the city’s heart. In fact, Messiah himself gave fans one of the era’s most iconic moments during that series. At a rally before game one against Brooklyn, the normally very composed Messiah started rallying, “F Brooklyn. What a moment. No PR, no fake emotions. Bis came truly from the heart of Messiah. He really didn’t like Brooklyn. He later apologized for the language, but everybody loved it. Here was a team executive unafraid to show his passion. That moment became the stuff of legends. It symbolized a new attitude. Toronto were no longer going to be pushed around or looked down upon. Messiah had arrived and the Raptors had a swagger and hope that the team hadn’t felt in ages. Now, making the playoffs in 2014 was just the beginning for Messiah. Getting there wasn’t enough. He wanted the Raptors to be great. Trump for real took this motto and just put USA where the Raptors were. In an effort to make Toronto good, not just for a season, but every year, Messiah started building something special. And it worked. From 2014 to 2020, the Raptors made the playoff 7 years in a row. That kind of consistency doesn’t happen by accident. It happened because Messiah knew what he was doing. Back in 2015, he took a chance on a littleknown guard named Norman Powell, grabbing him in the second round. Not many people noticed at the time, but Raptors fans will never forget his high-flying dunks or how good he was in the playoffs. Then in 2016, Messiah made another brilliant move with the 27th pick. He selected Pascal Siakum, a lanky forward from Cameroon who had just begun playing basketball at the age of 18. Seakum worked hard, improved every year, and not only did he become an all-star, but he also became a champion. In the same year that Siakum was drafted, the Raptors also selected Yaka Purle with the ninth pick. He became a key piece off the bench and an anchor defensively. But besides best discovery besides Seiakum was someone who didn’t even get drafted at all. In the summer of 2016, he signed a tough young point guard named Fred Van Vleet. Fred had been overlooked by every team, but he had something that Messiah loved, heart. He played with a chip on his shoulder and even had a motto, bet on yourself. Messiah listened and Fred repaid him by becoming a key player in one of the most important seasons in Raptors history. We’ll get there Raptors fans, don’t worry. Messiah also kept finding diamonds in the rough. In 2017, he drafted OG Anobi with the 23rd pick. Another unknown player that developed into a defensive star. Year after year, the Raptors bench got deeper, younger, and hungrier. Messiah wasn’t just building a team. He was building a culture, a place where players developed, worked hard, and truly believed they could win. Now, as good as these players were, for an NBA franchise to be successful, they need to have a good start. And that’s where the duo of Kyle Lowry and Demar De Rozan came in. After almost trading Lowry away, he ended up becoming the heartbeat of the team. Msina trusted him, resign him, and it became one of the best decisions he ever made. Larry became a six-time all-star and the leader of the franchise. Alongside him was his best friend, D. Rozan, a gifted score who loved Toronto and never wanted to leave. Together, the two of them gave the rappers an identity. They were tough, they were fearless, and they were loyal. And year by year, the two of them helped the team climb higher and higher. In 2015, the Raptors won 49 games and another division title. But the playoffs were a different story. They got swept in the first round by Washington. It was a tough pill to swallow. Some teams might have hit the panic button, but Messiah didn’t. He stayed calm, looked at what was missing, and made changes. By 2016, those changes started paying off. The Raptors reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in the team’s history. They pushed LeBron James and the Cavs to six games. It was a big moment, not just for the team, but for the entire city. Toronto finally felt like it belonged among the NBA’s best. After that run, Messiah was promoted to president of basketball operations, taking full control of the team, and he didn’t slow down. He kept adding pieces, including a big trade in 2017 where he sent Terrence Ross and a firstround pick to Orlando for Serge Ibaka. Ibaka brought defense, toughness, and nice fashion. Around that same time, Messiah also brought in PJ Tucker, a nononsense defender who could guard one through five. These were the moves that the Raptors needed, players with playoff experience and leadership. The team was now becoming a powerhouse. From 2016 to 2018, they were a 50 plus win squad, packed with talent and experience. Now, the home games at the Scotia Bank Arena were electric. We the North wasn’t just a slogan, it became a movement. Jurassic Park outside the arena was constantly filled up with fans. Toronto had fallen in love with basketball all over again. But unfortunately, there was one big problem, and his name was LeBron James. No matter how good the Raptors got, no matter how well they played, no matter what moves they made, LeBron and the Cavs always seem to stand in their way. In 2017 and 2018, Cleveland knocked out Toronto again, brutally. The 2018 season was the worst. The Raptors had the best regular season record in franchise history. Dwayne Casey had one coach of the year. They had multiple all-stars. And Cleveland looked to be struggling. It was LeBron James and a bunch of nobodyies. Yet in the playoffs, another sweep by Cleveland. LeBron just owned the Raptors. Toronto had become Lebronto. It was clear to Messiah that something had to change. They couldn’t keep being so good in the regular season, then losing one mattered the most. As much as the fans loved the team, as much as the regular season success was real, the Raptors had clearly hit a wall. The D Rose and Lowry core had gone as far as it could. If they were going to win a title, they needed to take a leap of faith. So, Messiah was ready to make the boldest decision of his career. and what he did next would change everything. The summer of 2018 will never be forgotten by Raptors fans. Messai made two bold moves that would shake the basketball world. The first was him firing Dwayne Casey, the man who had been Toronto’s head coach for years, the man who had just been named the NBA coach of the year. It shocked everyone. Casey had brought the Raptors to the top of the East and had earned the respect of players and fans alike. But Messiah saw things differently. He believed the team needed a fresh voice to finally get over the hump in the playoffs. So instead of hiring a bigname coach, Messiah promoted a littleknown assistant by the name of Nick Nurse. Nurse had won a G-League title with the Raptors 905 and was known for his creative ideas on offense. To some, it felt like a strange choice, but Messiah believed in it. He trusted that Nurse could bring something different when it mattered the most. But as it turned out, that coaching change was only the second boldest move that Messiah would make that summer. On July 18th, 2018, Messiah made the biggest trade in Raptors history. He sent Demar D Rozan, the face of the franchise, the team’s all-time leading scoreer and the player who loved Toronto more than anything else, to the San Antonio Spurs. Along with D Rozan, Yaka Purle, and a draft pick were also sent out. In return, Toronto received Kawhi Leonard and a veteran shooter in Danny Green. The news hit fans like a thunderbolt. It’s like when your nudes get leaked. D. Rozan wasn’t just a player, he was family. He had stayed loyal when so many other stars before him would have left and now he was just gone. Even worse was that the guy they got for him only had one year left on his contract. Kawhai had injury issues and there was no guarantee that he would resign with Toronto. It was a massive gamble and one that only a few people would have the courage to take. But from the very first game of the 2019 season, Kawhai showed why Messiah had taken the chance. He played like a superstar. His calm, steady dominance gave the Rappers something they never had, a player who could go toe-to-toe with anyone in the world. His presence lifted everyone around him. Larry adjusted his game and led with even more grit and playmaking. Seakum exploded into a rising second star, eventually winning the most improved player. And Danny Green added three-point shooting and defense to the team. And then came another piece of the puzzle. At the 2019 trade deadline, Messi made one more move. He traded Valenunz, Dylon Wright, CJ Miles, and a pick to get Mark Gasol from Memphis. Gasol was older, but he brought championship level intelligence, defense, and leadership. He wasn’t putting up flashy numbers or high-flying dunks, but his impact on both ends of the floor was exactly what the Raptors needed to take the next step. With Kawawaii, Gasol, and the rest of the squad in place, Toronto looked ready. It was now or never. And what came next? Pure magic. In the playoffs, the Raptors began their unforgettable journey. First, they beat Orlando in five games. Then came the classic sevename battle with the 76ers that gave us one of the most iconic moments in NBA history. for the winter. That shot didn’t just win the game. It became a symbol of hope and it gave Raptors fans belief. Next up was the Milwaukee Bucks. Down 02 in the series, the Raptors didn’t panic. They fought back one game at a time, winning four straight to reach their first ever NBA finals. The defense on Giannis built around Gasol’s paint presence and Kawhi Leonard’s incredible 1v1 defending worked to perfection. You can also thank Nick Nurse for that. And then came the final test. The Golden State Warriors, the defending champs, a dynasty. Even with injuries to their key players, they were still dangerous. But the Raptors were fearless. And more importantly, they believed. Kawawaii was unstoppable. Lowry played like a warrior. Seakum destroyed everyone with his Beyblade spins. And Fred Van Vle was hitting big shots. So when the final buzzer happened in game six in Oakland, the Rappers couldn’t believe what was happening. They were NBA champions. The Rappers. The 2019 NBA champs. It still doesn’t feel real. The city went wild. The country went wild cuz the Raptors don’t just represent the city of Toronto. They represent the entire country of Canada. The victory parade lasted hours. Millions filled the streets. Messiah stood tall on the float holding the trophy with a proud smile as fans chanted his name. Some called him the true MVP cuz in just 6 years, he had done what no one else had done before. He turned the Raptors into champions. He didn’t just build a winning team. He changed the way people saw Toronto basketball. Suddenly, Raptors weren’t just LeBronto. They were a global force, a real threat, and a franchise with a ring to show for it. It was the year that everything changed. It was the year Toronto became champions. Winning the title in 2019 was a dream come true. But what came next showed just how tough life in the NBA really is. One moment you’re on top of the world, the next you’re fighting to stay there. Messiah had always said that the goal wasn’t just to win once, it was to build something that could last. But right after the championship parade, the rappers were hit with a huge loss. Kawhi Leonard, the finals MVP, decided to leave and sign with the Clippers. Fans had hoped that maybe, just maybe, the magic of that one unforgettable season could convince him to stay. After all, who can say no to K and dime, but ultimately he chose to go home to California. It’s done. The Raptors had lost a superstar. Messiah has always though stayed calm. He thanked Kawaii for everything and turned the page. He wasn’t going to just blow it all up. Instead, he doubled down on the core. Kyle Larry, Pascal, Seakum, Fred Van Vleet, and OJ Anobi. He believed in And in the 2020 season, they were proving him right. Even without Kawhai, the Raptors finished with the second best record in the NBA. Saka became an all-star. Larry led like a true veteran. And Nick Nurse won coach of the year. In the playoffs, though, they fell short in a tough sevengame series against Boston in the bubble. They fought with heart, but it wasn’t enough. And then came the hardest stretch in Messiah’s tenure. Because of the pandemic, the Raptor had to play their entire 2021 season in Tampa. No home games, no Jurassic Park, no real comfort. Every game was a road trip. They had to stay in hotels. The stands were empty. Then on top of that, players were getting injured. Co was spreading like wildfire. It was, as many called it, the lost season. And the Raptors ended up missing the playoffs for the first time in a year. That same offseason, Ibaka and Gasol, two very key pieces from the championship team, left in free agency. Messiah tried to plug the holes with signings like Aaron Baines, but it just wasn’t the same. The only person who believed in Baines was that guy on Twitter. Instead of replacing the two legends that had left, Baines just became the tank commander, a great player for a team looking to lose. The magic was gone and by the end of the year, the team was near the bottom of the standings. But there was one bright spot. Because of their poor record, the Rappers had a high draft pick for the first time in years. They ended up getting the fourth overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft and selected Scotty Barnes. Now, some fans scratched their head. Everyone thought the Rappers were going to pick up Jaylen S. But Messia believed in Scotty’s versatility, his personality, and his potential. And once again, he was right. Scotty Barnes won rookie of the year, and he showed flashes of being the next big thing in Toronto, a new star to build around. That same summer, Messiah made an emotional move. He agreed to a sign and trade that sent Kyle Larry, the heart and soul of the Raptors, to the Miami Heat. In return, Toronto got Precious Aua and Gorandra. It was the end of an era. Larry had given everything to the city. But the departure was handled with love and respect. Messiah made sure of that. Now, with Lowry gone and Barnes on the rise, the Raptors began a new chapter. The 2021 2022 season brought hope again with Seakum, Van Vleet, OG, and Barnes leading the way. The team fought hard and actually earned the fifth seed in the East. They were tough, long, and scrappy. M just the way Messiah liked it. He also introduced a new idea. Vision 69. No, get your head out of the gutter. His vision was about building a lineup full of 6’9 players who could all switch, defend, rebound, and handle the ball. Scotty, Siakum, OG, and Aua all fit that mold. For a while, it looked like it might work, but as the 2023 season went on, the flaws started to show. Sure, they could all defend one through five, but they couldn’t shoot. They lacked a traditional point guard and a true rim protector. The results weren’t awful, but they weren’t great either. The Raptors finished 41 and 41 and lost in the playin tournament. But at this point, the fans were starting to get frustrated cuz they were stuck in limbo. They weren’t bad enough to get a good draft pick, but they also weren’t good enough to compete. For the first time, Messiah faced real criticism. People wondered if he had waited too long to make trades, if he’d missed the window. Vision 6’9 sounded cool, but it didn’t actually work on the court. They were also losing players without getting anything in return. They lost Fred Van Vleet in free agency to Houston. People question why he wasn’t traded sooner if he wasn’t going to resign. Then later when Messiah did make some trades like OG to the Knicks and Seakum to the Pacers, people questioned the timing of these moves. Why weren’t they made earlier? It wasn’t until the 2024 season that Messiah made it clear he was finally willing to rebuild. And that of course came after the OG and Seakum trade. The last remaining pieces from the 2019 team were gone. And it was emotional, especially the Seakum trade. He had been drafted by the Raptors, developed in their system, and had gone from a guy who couldn’t dribble to a true star. But Messiah knew it was time to reset. In return, they got picks and players that could help build around Scotty Barnes and the new core. It wasn’t easy, and not every fan agreed, but deep down, most still trusted Messiah because he had done it before. He always saw the big picture. He asked fans for patience. He reminded everyone that building something special takes time, and he would know better than anyone. After all, he had done it once before, and he did it at a time that no one believed it could be done. But then in a twist no one saw coming, news came out that the rappers and Messiah were parting ways. I just know at least one person fell to their knees at Loblaws when they got that update alert. After 13 unforgettable years, the man who had led the team to the highest of highs was stepping away. Fans were stunned. It didn’t feel real. According to reports, the split had been building for a while. Differences in direction with the new ownership, changing visions for the future, and maybe just a quiet truth that even the greatest runs eventually end. Still though, when it finally happened, it hit hard. For rappers fans, Messiah wasn’t just an executive. In many ways, he was the face of the franchise. The voice who once stood in front of the crowd and said, “We will win in Toronto.” And then went out and actually proved it. His presence was a source of comfort. No matter how rough things got, fans always believed Messiah had a plan. And now he was gone. The team’s official statement was full of praise, calling his impact monumental. Messiah Yujeri has had a monumental impact on the Raptors and on our community during his 13 seasons with this organization and rightly so. He had changed the course of basketball in Canada. He brought respect. He brought pride. He brought a championship. Now, what comes next? Who could ever fill those shoes? Only time will tell. But no matter who comes in, that championship banner hanging above the court will always be tied to Messiah. It was his courage, his vision, his belief that allowed Toronto to win it all. He will be greatly missed. Now, fortunately, one part of Messiah still remains in the team, and that’s Scotty Barnes. To see how good this guy has been for the Toronto Raptors, you have to check out this video right

Masai Ujiri is leaving the Toronto Raptors — a move that could change everything for the franchise. From building a championship-winning team to leading one of the most respected front offices in the NBA, his impact has been massive. This video looks at his legacy, the reasons behind his departure, and what comes next for the Raptors.

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