Category: Toronto Raptors Blog

The Toronto Raptors announced Sunday they have signed forward OG Anunoby (O G Ann-uh-no-bee) to a rookie scale contract. Anunoby is under contract through the 2018-19 season, with two team option years to follow.

The Raptors selected Anunoby with the 23rd overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

Anunoby, 6-foot-8, 232 pounds, played two seasons at Indiana (2015-17), averaging 6.8 points, 3.5 rebounds and 17.4 minutes. He totaled 48 steals and 47 blocks in 50 career games (10 starts).

Anunoby averaged 11.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 25.1 minutes this past season. He recorded at least one block or one steal in all 16 of his games played. Anunoby set career highs of 21 points November 27 versus Mississippi Valley State and seven steals January 15 versus Rutgers. He sustained a season-ending injury to his right knee January 18 at Penn State.

The Toronto Raptors announced Friday they have re-signed three-time NBA All-Star Kyle Lowry to a multi-year contract.

“Kyle has been a valuable part of our team’s success the past five years,” said Raptors President Masai Ujiri. “He has grown as a player and person during his time in Toronto and we are excited that he wants to be here to help us continue building a championship program.”

Per multiple reports, Lowry signed a three-year contract worth $100 million.

In five seasons with Toronto, Lowry is averaging 18.2 points, 4.7 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 1.6 steals and 35.0 minutes during 354 regular season games. He is also averaging 18.1 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.6 assists in 39 playoff appearances. Lowry is the Raptors’ all-time career leader with 828 made three-pointers, second in assists (2,405) and sixth in scoring with 6,430 points. Over the past four seasons he leads all Eastern Conference players with 727 three-pointers made.

A native of Philadelphia, Lowry is one of three players in team history to make three consecutive NBA All-Star appearances, joining Vince Carter and Chris Bosh. He was voted as a starter twice – 2015 in New York and 2016 in Toronto. Lowry earned Eastern Conference Player of the Month honours twice with the Raptors (December 2014 and January 2016) and named East Player of the Week three times (last: February 22-28, 2016).

Lowry averaged a career-high 22.4 points and shot a career-best .412 (193-468) from three-point range during 60 appearances in the 2016-17 season. He led the team in scoring 24 times and finished ninth in the NBA averaging 7.0 assists.

Lowry has made at least 100 three-pointers in five consecutive seasons with Toronto. He made a franchise-record and career-best 212 three-pointers during the 2015-16 season, which ranked fifth in the NBA.

The Raptors acquired Lowry from the Houston Rockets on July 11, 2012 in exchange for Gary Forbes and a first-round draft pick. He was a first-round selection (24th overall) by Memphis in the 2006 NBA Draft. Lowry has appeared in 713 regular season games (477 starts), averaging 14.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.4 steals and 30.9 minutes for Memphis, Houston and Toronto.

The Toronto Raptors announced Wednesday they have promoted Bobby Webster to general manager, Dan Tolzman to assistant general manager / vice president, player personnel and Keith Boyarsky to vice president, basketball strategy & research. Masai Ujiri will continue to oversee basketball operations as president of the club.

“We are excited to promote Bobby, Dan and Keith for their hard work and important contributions to our program,” said Ujiri. “They have been invaluable across many aspects of the franchise, making decisions on our salary management, key input on scouting, analytics, strategy, player personnel and team building that has helped us develop a winning culture throughout our organization.”

Webster joined the Raptors front office in 2013 as vice president, basketball management & strategy, and helped construct a roster that won three consecutive Atlantic Division titles (2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16) and back-to-back 50-win seasons for the first time in franchise history. The Raptors have compiled a 204-124 (.622) regular season record since 2013 – the best in the Eastern Conference the past four years.
Webster was promoted to assistant general manager / vice president, basketball strategy in September 2016. He came to the Raptors after working for the NBA league office in New York for the previous seven seasons in the NBA’s CBA group.

Tolzman has served the past two seasons as director, player personnel / general manager of Raptors 905, the team’s NBA G League affiliate. He will continue to serve as Raptors 905’s general manager in his new role. Raptors 905 has compiled a 62-38 (.620) regular-season record during its first two seasons under Tolzman’s direction. During the 2016-17 campaign, Raptors 905 completed the regular season with a 39-11 (.780) record (second-most wins in G League history) and a 6-1 record in the post-season en route to winning the team’s first NBA G League Championship.

Tolzman joined the Raptors as director of scouting in 2013 and organized the team’s scouting efforts for the NBA draft and free agency preparation. He was a member of Ujiri’s staff in Denver, serving as scouting coordinator from 2011-13 and also worked in the media relations department from 2004-09.

Boyarsky joined the Raptors as an analytics consultant during the 2009-10 season and served as director of analytics since 2013-14. He advises management in player evaluation and roster construction, while providing the coaching staff with data-driven scouting and analysis. Boyarsky adapts new technologies and data sources to lead the Raptors’ efforts in innovating new competitive advantages.

The Raptors are introducing the Wayne Embry Fellowship, which will give one Canadian applicant each year the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in a professional basketball operations environment.

The team will begin accepting applications for the inaugural Wayne Embry Fellowship which will take place from July, 2017 until July, 2018 and will provide a paid position to gain exposure in every area of basketball operations with the Toronto Raptors.

“It has been incredible to see the development of so many players from Canada over the years thanks to their exposure to the NBA since the birth of the Raptors,” said Toronto Raptors President Masai Ujiri. “We have also seen some real stars develop off the court during that time and the Wayne Embry Fellowship is meant to give even more people the chance to learn this side of the business and build a career in the front office of a NBA team. Wayne Embry is a man who helped break barriers and create opportunities for many people during his long and successful career, including myself, and this program is another example of that.”

The Wayne Embry Fellowship with the Raptors will consist of a year-long paid position with the team involving time spent in all areas of basketball operations to provide exposure to all facets of the inner-workings of a NBA team, including coaching, scouting, team services, player development, medical, financial, equipment, travel and the NBA Gatorade League (NBA G-League).

Each rotation within the program will include a mentor and specific responsibilities as they learn the role that each department plays in the organization. The fellow will also have the opportunity to gain event operations experience at NBA Summer League, the NBA G-League Showcase and Basketball without Borders global camp held during NBA All-Star Weekend. Travel and accommodations for these events will be covered by the organization as part of the Fellowship experience.

“It has been very rewarding for everyone in the Raptors organization to see the growth of the game in Canada over the years, but a successful franchise also requires the contributions of so many people behind the scenes,” said Wayne Embry. “This program is the chance to create opportunity for people who dream about a career in basketball but not might otherwise have the chance to develop the necessary experience.”
Applicants are asked to submit a video no longer than two minutes by Friday, May 19, 2017 that answers the following questions: “How are you uniquely qualified for this fellowship through your Perseverance, Persistence, Preparation, Passion, Perception and/or Pride?” and “Why do you want this fellowship opportunity?”

As part of the application process, finalists for the position will travel to Toronto early in June for an in-person meeting with Wayne Embry and interviews with a panel of Raptors executives.