The Toronto Raptors made waves in the NBA world this morning by parting ways with the Vice Chairman and President of the Raptors, Masai Ujiri. Toronto has quietly built up an intriguing young core, and appears ready to leap forward in contention in the desolate Eastern Conference this season. Connected to numerous trade rumors, including those involving two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, they enter this offseason as one of the most interesting teams in the NBA. But does the change in leadership in Toronto have an impact on trading for Antetokounmpo?
Odds for a Trade?
Looking at the odds on DraftKings Sportsbook, the Toronto Raptors hold +1200 odds of being the team that Giannis Antetokounmpo plays his first minute for next season. There has been no odds movement since the organizational change was made in Toronto this morning.
Why Was Masai Ujiri Fired?
Masai Ujiri has been with the Raptors organization since 2013. During his time with the franchise, he has earned NBA Executive of the Year honors and was the primary architect in building the 2019 NBA Finals Team. This was one of the more unique championships in NBA history, in which Toronto took a one-year flyer trading for Kawhi Leonard, who left for Los Angeles in the following offseason. But the championship still speaks for itself. Not all front offices would have had the guts to take this significant of a swing.
In the six seasons since, the Raptors have made the playoffs just twice, and won only one playoff series. It also cannot be ignored that this decision comes less than 24 hours after the conclusion of the 2025 NBA Draft. Toronto selected South Carolina’s Collin Murray-Boyles with the ninth overall pick and brought in Alijah Martin with their second-round pick.
Ujiri had just one year remaining on his contract, and Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment elected that the time to act was now. Whether this was driven out of frustrations with the draft class, the rebuilding timeline being slow, or other factors that have not become public yet is to be determined.
But Ujiri is well respected in NBA circles and likely will not be waiting long for another job opportunity. With a background as an international basketball player with plenty of experience and success running a front office, expect plenty of teams to be interested in bringing him in as an aide or to take over a specific position.
To the same point, the Toronto Raptors look ready to leap forward in their production this season. Scottie Barnes continues on his developmental path, Murray-Boyles fits the archetype of players Toronto has had success with, Brandon Ingram has yet to make his Raptors debut after coming over in a midseason trade, and players like RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley remain on the roster. Darko Rajakovic has impressed in his opening two seasons as head coach, and there are more pieces for him to maximize this season. This is a situation in which both sides can have their break-up and be better moving forward.
Where will Giannis Antetokounmpo Land?
The biggest hurdle in evaluating Giannis Antetokounmpo’s next landing spot is the growing chance that he just remains in Milwaukee. Antetokounmpo has been one of the most loyal stars in today’s NBA, spending his entire career with the Bucks to this point. While there have been plenty of meetings between him and the franchise to discuss his future, it continues to be made explicitly clear that he has not requested a trade.
It felt as if the writing was on the wall when Damian Lillard went down with his torn Achilles during the opening round of the playoffs against the Pacers. Milwaukee took a big swing to create this superstar pairing of Antetokounmpo and Lillard, but the duo has been limited to 116 regular-season games played together. They also have not finished a playoff run with both being healthy together in either season. Lillard will be out for an extended period next year, with a chance to miss the full season on the table. Even if he does return, Lillard will be turning 35 and has shown some signs of decline in his game before this injury popped up.
But Antetokounmpo is also cognizant of how wide open the Eastern Conference is next season. The nine-time All-Star proved capable of leading the team to a championship in 2021, and he has not shown any signs of slowing down. In his age-30 season last year, you could make a case that it was Antetokounmpo’s most impressive as he averaged 30.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 1.2 blocks while shooting a ridiculous 60.1% from the field. He led the Bucks to a 48-34 regular season, which put them in fifth place in the Eastern Conference. Their first-round exit at the hands of the Pacers feels better than it did at the time, following Indiana’s impressive postseason run to win the Eastern Conference.
Milwaukee is fairly empty on trade assets, but it can still get creative. Antetokounmpo appears content seeing the organizational plan for the offseason before fully making his decision. He currently has two years and a player option remaining on his contract worth $175.4 million combined. Given the team control and the caliber of talent he is, Antetokounmpo would command a massive return on the trade market. It takes two teams to get the deal done, and one would think the organization would be willing to work with Antetokounmpo to get him to his desired destination based on the success he has brought the franchise. This does not have the feel of getting to the level of bad blood that a star forcing his way on can escalate to.
For the time being, the future of Antetokounmpo feels dependent on how the rest of the offseason goes in Milwaukee. The change in leadership in Toronto does not seem to have any impact on their outlook for the superstar at this stage, with a clear desire to leave the organization, which needs to be the first step in any sort of change.
Things can change quickly in the NBA. But for the time being, it seems Antetokounmpo is trending toward suiting up for his 13th season with the Bucks while Toronto will sort through the talent they have on the roster.
