Mavericks hire Masai Ujiri, a proven winner, as new team president

May 4, 2026, 12:54 p.m. ETPatrick Dumont swung for the fences and hit a home run.The Dallas Mavericks governor announced the hiring of Masai Ujiri as the franchise’s new team president and alternate governor. It ends a six-month search with a splash, as Ujiri is one of the most accomplished front office executives in NBA history.Ujiri spent 13 seasons in Toronto building the Raptors from afterthought to champion. The centerpiece of his tenure was obviously the 2019 NBA title, which was engineered by his bold moves. He traded franchise cornerstone DeMar DeRozan for Kawhi Leonard in the summer of 2018. Everyone thought he was crazy, but Toronto won the championship the following June. Before the Raptors, Ujiri ran the Denver Nuggets' front office from 2010-2013 and was named the NBA’s Executive of the Year after assembling a 57-win roster. He is the only non-American ever to win the award. Ujiri parted ways with Toronto in June 2025 after the Raptors missed the playoffs in four of five seasons. He joined the ownership group of the WNBA’s Toronto Tempo in March and made no secret he had unfinished business in the NBA. "One of my main goals is to win another