Toronto Raptors General Manager Masai Ujiri will be honored at the 2016 Ghana Basketball Awards for his dedication and contribution to the development of basketball in Africa.
The highly celebrated awards will take place on August 12 at the Best Western Premier Hotel in Ghana’s capital, Accra on August 12.
Ujiri will receive the Meritorious Award for the Development of basketball in Africa in light of the former Denver Nuggets Executive Vice-President’s immense contribution to the development of the sport through his renowned Giants of Africa program.
Giants of Africa is a non-profit organization started in 2003 with an aim to provide access to elite coaching and facilities to young basketball players on the African continent. The program is responsible for getting over 80 African players enrolled in High Schools and Universities in the US.
Ujiri, a Nigerian native, rose to prominence as the Nuggets Vice-President in charge of basketball operations culminating in an NBA Executive of the Year Award in 2013. He is the only non-American to win the award.
He has since led the Toronto Raptors set a franchise record 56 games in the just ended season and recently signed swingman DeMar DeRozan to a five year $139 million dollar contract.
