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ramona shelburne
multiple authors
East Toronto Raptors President Masai has joined Ujiri’s ownership group toronto tempoThe city’s new WNBA franchise that begins play this season.
“I think the women’s game is growing in an incredible way. You see it in the WNBA, in football, in hockey, and for the first time to bring a brand like this to a city that I know, a beautiful city that is passionate, that I believe in — I think it will really resonate,” Ujiri told ESPN. “Ownership is a unique opportunity for me and my family.”
Ujiri is joining the ownership group led by Larry Tenenbaum, with whom he won Toronto’s only NBA title in 2019. Since parting ways with the Raptors, Ujiri, who grew up in Nigeria, has focused on his work with Giants of Africa, the United Nations and the Zaria Group, which is building sports and entertainment infrastructure across Africa.
“It’s been extremely busy,” Ujiri said of his year away from the NBA, most of which he has spent in Florida with his family. “I was able to focus on my family. I was a driver for 12 years because I was always on the phone, now I’ve become an Uber driver for my kids.
“They’re in the game and they get them into this practice, get them towards that. And then I’m working on the facilities and infrastructure on the continent.
“We have just completed the construction of Sports City [in Rwanda] And now I’m working with the United Nations in the Sahel [region of north-central Africa]. And we’re going to open in Guinea, Sierra Leone and Mauritania in a few weeks. “We pledged to build sports complexes and they are absolutely incredible.”
Still, Ujiri has remained close to the NBA world – speaking frequently with former Raptors players, coaches, executives and several owners, with an eye on returning to the league in some capacity if the right opportunity presents itself.
“I’m learning more about my game, the NBA, looking at trends and studying other leagues to see what we might be missing,” he said. “I spend a lot of my time doing that because my main goal is to win another championship. I want to win with tempo and I want to win another NBA championship because I wasn’t able to celebrate and be happy because of that police incident that happened to me.”
Ujiri was referring to an incident in which a San Francisco-area sheriff’s deputy stopped Ujiri from running onto the court to celebrate the Raptors’ title. Golden State Warriors at the Oracle Arena because they did not provide proper credentials, leading to a blowout match that was partially captured on video. The deputy sued Ujiri, accusing him of assault. Ujiri countered, saying video footage showed the deputy was “undoubtedly the initial aggressor” and that if he had not been black he would never have been treated with such disrespect.
Both sides eventually dropped their lawsuits, but Ujiri said the experience left a sour taste that spoiled the Raptors’ title run for him and inspired him to someday win another title with another team.
“I’m hungry because of what’s happened,” he said. “I want to win again so I can really enjoy it.”
With Tempo, he will work for Tanenbaum and alongside two executives he has known for decades, team president Teresa Resch and general manager Monica Wright Rogers.
“Masai has been my mentor since 2008, when I worked at one of his camps in Africa,” Resch told ESPN. “We connect frequently on professional and personal development things. And since he’s come on board as an owner, it’s a different level. He has a lot of big ideas and he also understands what it means to put a team together.”
Ujiri is also launching Tempo Rising, a global coaching mentorship program in collaboration with Tempo. Tempo Rising supports emerging female-identified and non-binary coaches at the introductory level through exclusive access to mentorship, professional development, and practical coaching experiences with Ujiri, Wright Rogers, and Tempo coach Sandy Brondello.
