I woke up today expecting to meet Collin Murray-Boyles. Instead, I eulogized the iconic tenure of one of the most impactful figures in the history of Canadian sport. Masai Ujiri represented something bigger than basketball for the Raptors & now he’s gone:

Fun chat with @vivekmjacob talking all things Raptors president search, front office limbo, and Summer League takeaways. Check it out.

No members of the 4-1 3rd-place Raptors on the Las Vegas Summer League first or second teams. Tough, but their success was driven by depth and excellent team defence, as opposed to 1 or 2 standout (and consistent) players. Could make a case for Lawson, Walter, Shead, CMB or Mogbo.

The Raptors will hold training camp in Calgary this fall. They’ve been there twice before for preseason games (in 1996 and 2016) but this will be their first time hosting camp in Alberta. Their full preseason schedule:

The Raptors will play a preseason game against Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray and the Nuggets at Rogers Arena in Vancouver on Oct. 6. It will be Toronto's 7th exhibition game there since 2010 (they're an undefeated 6-0 in those contests).

Internal growth had been a long-time organizational strength (they have a championship to show for it) until it wasn't. Development stalled & the depth of young talent dried up. Always take SL results with a grain of salt, but this run reaffirmed Raps are back on the right track.

Summer League is an important checkpoint, a chance to see where guys are at mid-way through the offseason. The Raptors came to Vegas with more regular roster players than any other team and can leave feeling good about the progress those guys have made. A fun and encouraging run.

Jonathan Mogbo is back for the Raptors’ semifinals game vs Sacramento today. AJ Lawson (Bilateral Hip Adductor Strain) is out. Chomche replaces Castleton in the starting lineup, with Shead, Walter, Battle and Murray-Boyles.

Raptors with Collin Murray-Boyles on the floor tonight: +21.Raptors without him: -9. CMB: 8-13 FG, everybody else: 17-64 FG. The rook in his 3rd Summer League game (and Toronto's semifinals clincher): 20 points, 9 rebounds, 4 steals.

The Raptors forced 114 turnovers in 4 games & are off to the semis. Last 2 summers in Vegas: 3-7, -63 (23rd & 28th place finishes).This year: 4-0, +63 (1st seed going into semis). Speaks to the organization’s developmental turnaround over the past 12 months. Pipeline = restocked.

Lucky Summer League quarters are only 10 minutes. This Raptors defence with 8 additional minutes:

Layup ➡️ steal ➡️ dunk ➡️ offensive rebound ➡️ bucket. All in 30 seconds. What a sequence for the rook.

Collin "Extra Possession" Murray-Boyles just rolls off the tip of the tongue, doesn't it?.

RT @vivekmjacob: The two rookies CMB and Martin have combined for 19pts on 7-of-11 shooting. Rest of Raptors 4-of-28.

CMB has looked better/more comfortable in each game. Was great in 1st half. 2 strong finishes at rim, put-back, above the break 3 (!), crashing glass (7 boards, 4 oreb), active on D. 12 pts on 4-7 FG/1-2 3P/3-4 FT in 12 mins. Catalyst of the comeback. 9 in a game Raps trail by 1.

Collin Murray-Boyles: 9 points, 4-6 FG, 1-2 3P.Everybody else: 9 points, 3-20 FG, 1-13 3P.

👀.

For a guy that's played so little high-level basketball, Chomche's feel for the game is awesome. As raw as he was in Vegas last summer, I remember being impressed with his passing and it's gotten even better since. Just threaded the needle on a 1-handed pass to Martin; beautiful.

Could see that Shead-CMB pick and roll becoming a fixture with that second unit in the not-so-distant future. Murray-Boyles has the Raptors' first couple buckets, both at the rim.

Jonathan Mogbo (who's been excellent through 3 games) will miss tonight's contest with a sprained right hand. Shead, Walter, Battle, Murray-Boyles, Castleton start vs Golden State.

Here’s how it looks with only 2 consequential games left. Top 4 teams (by record/point differential) advance. Hornets 4-0 +51 (clinched).Raptors 3-0 +51 (vs GSW tonight).Thunder 4-0 +45 (clinched).Kings 4-0 +38.Wolves 4-0 +34.Hawks 4-0 +32 (out).Clippers 3-0 +27 (vs DEN tonight).