It’s so long ago now, such a distant memory, that it’s easy to forget. But before Masai Ujiri arrived in Toronto as general manager in 2013, the Raptors were, by and large, synonymous with irrelevance and incompetence.
Vince Carter had come and gone, leaving a trail of disappointment in his wake. Bryan Colangelo had used an injection of European-bred flair to hang an Atlantic Division championship banner from the Bay Street rafters after a 47-win season in 2006-07. But beyond that, in the stretch of years that saw Chris Bosh leave for South Beach and the losses amass, the Raptors missed the playoffs for five straight seasons. That meant the first 18 seasons of the franchise’s history included precisely one playoff-series victory.
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