There was no formal interview, no moment when Bobby Webster sat in a boardroom and was grilled about the Toronto Raptors’ past, present and future.
Instead, the team’s search for its next leader was a process of the relevant parties getting to know each other better. Some dinners. Meetings between Webster and leaders at MLSE, the parent company that owns the Raptors, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Toronto FC of MLS among other holdings.
It helped, too, when MLSE president Keith Pelley made the trip to Las Vegas to see the Raptors and Webster, the team’s long-serving general manager, in action, and to help Webster get a feel for what leading this organization — with Rogers Communications in the final stages of assuming majority control of the business — would be like.
After a period of about seven weeks, during which Pelley led the search for a new Raptors president to take over for Masai Ujiri, who was let go on June 27th, both sides decided to keep finding out.
Rather than hire a new president, Pelley and the Raptors announced Monday that the 40-year-old Webster will continue in his present role as general manager — he was given an extension on his current deal — but with full control of the team that has fallen on hard times since it’s 2019 Championship peak, without a playoff appearance in the past three seasons.
“Going through this comprehensive process this summer and meeting with external candidates played a critical role in arriving at this decision, as it made clear that we already have the right person leading the Raptors in-house,” Pelley said in a statement. “When we weighed the many considerations, including roster construction, team culture and competitive landscape, it made perfect sense to officially hand the team to Bobby and give him the time and support to allow his plan to develop … After spending time together this summer in Las Vegas, I was very impressed by Bobby’s leadership style, his rapport with the players and staff, his reputation with his peers across the league and — especially and importantly — his vision for the Raptors. This team is his now to lead and I know we all look forward to what comes next.”
It’s a vote of confidence in Webster to be sure, but also an acknowledgement that finding the next guiding light for the Raptors in place of Ujiri, who led the team (with Webster as his right-hand) to eight playoff appearances and a championship in nine seasons, wasn’t easy.
According to sources, the Raptors formally interviewed three external candidates: Indiana Pacers president Kevin Pritchard, former Sacramento Kings general manager Monte McNair and long-time Raptors head coach and Detroit Pistons executive Dwane Casey.
Pritchard, who successfully brought the Pacers to the NBA Finals this past June while operating with the league’s 21st-ranked payroll and boasts a long track record as an executive, was their preferred choice but prying him away from the Pacers proved difficult.
They also looked at some other general managers as possibilities but couldn’t justify hiring an external candidate with the same level of experience as Webster given the success Toronto has had overall with him running the front office and his standing within the organization.
Webster has always been highly regarded within MLSE, and was able to carve out his own identity and relationships with ownership over the years despite being so closely aligned with Ujiri, who made Webster his first hire as the team’s vice president of basketball management and strategy back in 2013. After a stint as assistant general manager, Webster was named the team’s GM in June 2017, after Jeff Weltman left to become president of the Orlando Magic. At the time, Webster was 32 and the league’s youngest general manager.
Now eight years older, Webster has a lot more on his plate, even if his job title remains the same — a detail he’s not focussed on.
“On the title, what’s the best way to put it? The title, to me, probably isn’t as important as the responsibilities,” Webster said. “I’m really thankful for this opportunity. I’ll make the most of it and that (not getting the president title) is not something that concerns me.”
According to MLSE sources, Webster will have all the runway and leeway he needs to make the job his own. If he proves capable, the president title could follow.
“This is his chance,” said one source close to the hiring process. “Show (us) he’s the president. It’s a process. It’s all about the rebuild, it’s all about the strategy going forward. Can Brandon Ingram and Scottie Barnes become an incredible duo? How do you manage the tax situation we’re currently in?
“At the end of the day,” the source continued. “It will be about Bobby making the right decisions moving forward. He’s (40) and he’s got every quality that you want representing your organization. Now, it comes down to wins and losses, building the reputation of the brand and dealing with the salary cap.”
For Webster, it’s a chance he can hardly believe has come his way, even though his NBA career is now in its 20th year, having started with an entry-level position with the Magic out of college.
“Not only do these opportunities not come around very often, I think specifically with this situation — I think you all know this city, this country, this fan base, these owners — to me, there’s 30 of these jobs in the NBA, but this one is one of one, for all the reasons,” Webster said on a conference call. “The platform you have here, the opportunity we have with Canada, with Canada Basketball, with all the kids growing up in Canada playing. I just really think that there’s not a more unique basketball job in the world. … I grew up playing basketball as a small kid. To have it lead all the way here is, in many ways, sort of unbelievable.”
And now it’s up to him to run with it.
Webster’s vying for the job was somewhat complicated because he has led the Raptors alongside Ujiri as the team stumbled to consecutive seasons of 41, 25 and 30 wins, while entering this coming season with a projected payroll of $190.7 million, 10th highest in the league and $2.8 million over the luxury tax threshold.
Executives from other organizations look at some of the contracts the Raptors have given out in recent years with raised eyebrows — five years and $175 million for Immanuel Quickley, three years and $120 million for Ingram, and even the three-year, $84-million extension given to centre Jakob Poeltl this summer.
“I know sometimes you have to pay a premium for players in Canada, but that much?” said one Eastern Conference executive.
Adding to the challenge is what’s considered to be a high degree of positional overlap at the wings with a lack of depth a point guard and centre.
“They have a lot of nice pieces,” said another executive. “It’s just not clear how they all fit.”
In throwing his hat in for the job, Webster was in the difficult position of defending moves made while Ujiri was president without throwing his long-time boss under the proverbial bus.
Webster remains bullish on what he helped put together with Ujiri.
“I think this team is ready … to make the next step. And it doesn’t mean that there’s any proclamations about where this team goes, but I do think they’ve been together here for a year-and-a-half. We’ve obviously added some new pieces this off-season,” Webster said. “(So) I do think that the continuity here was really important. Darko (Rajakovic, the team’s head coach) is going into Year 3. Obviously, we’ve seen incredible growth during the off-season with a lot of our players … I think you saw during summer league, the sort of spirit of the team, a lot of the young players playing well. So, I think that was a big one for me. And I think we’re excited to see what these teams can do, and you know, we haven’t even got into a healthy Brandon Ingram and all the other things that we know.”
In the end, his case was convincing enough that Webster earned himself the opportunity to be the final decision-maker as the team he helped build moves forward from here.
He pledges to do it his way.
“(This) is an opportunity for me to (show) who Bobby is and sort of where we want this team to go,” he said. “You know my personality. Obviously, I’m going to lead with a smile. I’m going to lead with a lot of positivity, empower those around me.”
The Raptors may not have a president, but they have a leader, and it will be up to Webster to show that his style can win in the NBA, regardless of what his business card says.
Do that and the title — and maybe titles — will follow.
