When Masai Ujiri, the former head decision-maker for the NBA champion Toronto Raptors, thinks back on his childhood, the word “freedom” comes quickly to mind. Ujiri, who was born in England but grew up in Zaria, Nigeria, says he was able to live more freely back then than compared to even his own children and their peers today. They could walk where they wanted, play basketball during their downtime, and go to a friend’s house and play ping-pong. Today, a child’s life seems much more claustrophobic.
“So many things that I did as a youth liberated me in some kind of way to think really open-minded,” Ujiri tells American Songwriter. “My parents were a big factor in that, too.”
For the 55-year-old Ujiri, who attended Nathan Hale High School in Seattle, where he remembers also participating in the drama department, opportunities for youth are key. That’s why he founded his Giants of Africa organization in 2003 while working with the Denver Nuggets. The original aim was to discover basketball talent in Africa at the time, but the effort has since ballooned into clinics, culture events (fashion and food), tournaments, and more—investments in the next generation.
Masai Ujiri, who has served as the director for the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders Africa program, is keen on growing the pipeline from Africa to the NBA. But he’s also interested in supporting the continent itself. His 2025 Giants of Africa Festival will be held this summer from July 26 through August 2 in Kigali, Rwanda. It will bring together hundreds of youth basketball players from around Africa. It will also include legendary Afrobeats artists like Kizz Daniel and acclaimed songwriters like Timaya and Ayra Starr. Other featured guests include Kawhi Leonard, Chris Tucker, Robin Roberts, Candace Parker, and Chiney Ogwumike.
Back in 1985, Ujiri, then a young hooper, remembers playing in a basketball tournament in Nigeria. He was one of the youngest athletes there. And while that tournament didn’t include the musical element his 2025 GOA fest does, it did boast a strong sense of togetherness, Ujiri says. Players from different backgrounds and locales got to meet up, test their skills, and form relationships. That can go a long way both in a person’s life and in diplomatic relations at large down the road. Places all over the world, from Africa to America, have long suffered from some type of segregation. But Ujiri’s work aims to knock those walls down, at least to some degree.
“[In 1985] you were going to compete but you were also going to make friends, going to meet new people,” Uriji, the 2013 NBA Executive of the Year, says. “You were going to an opening ceremony, going to sing, going to chant, going to do so many things. And that has always been on my mind in terms of the festival we have now.”
Masai Ujiri cares about that youth. He makes a point to highlight empowerment opportunities for young girls at his camps and festivals, too. Ujiri also cares about the concept of a “borderless Africa.” He wants to bring the continent and its people together, and he wants to wield the tools that can do that, namely sports and music. “Mentorship,” he says. “That’s how I think of this festival.”
Ujiri says he’s learned a lot from the NBA in terms of how it tries to spread progressive messages to its fans and the world at large, from inclusivity to environmentalism.
In 2023, GOA celebrated its 20t anniversary. And what Ujiri noticed then was the vibe all around the festival. “The biggest thing that stood out for me looking at [the kids] was that they just felt so free,” he says, as if talking about himself in his own youth. “Sports brought them together, and they were just being themselves. Confident—very, very confident.”
Ujiri recalls the story of some 150 kids from all over the continent getting on the same plane together to fly to the festival two years ago in 2023. Ethiopia has the most well-traveled airline on the continent, and so when people fly places, they often travel through the country. The 150 youngsters all met up in the airport [and] all get on the same plane together. Many didn’t know one another. But quickly, they got comfortable.
“Before you know it,” Ujiri says, “camp is one day old and the kids are all relating to each other. There’s a sense of togetherness. That’s what we want to create.”
The former NBA general manager, who just parted ways with the Raptors this summer, says he remembers celebrating in 2023 at the fest. He even introduced his daughter to some of her musician heroes. He remembers dancing on stage. “The feeling was incredible,” he says, effusively. He also remembers a talent show where the young campers performed for the coaches and their teammates, just singing and dancing and playing instruments. “To see these kids and how talented they are and how they express themselves,” says Ujiri, “it was so cool.”
The kids are taught everything from dribbling skills to the importance of punctuality. But perhaps most of all, they’re given attention during the week-long event. They’re shown there is a place for them, that they belong, that there are things they can improve on. Masai Ujiri says that there is also a focus on teaching the kids that there are more jobs in sports besides starting point guard. “I didn’t play in the NBA,” says Ujiri, “but I ended up being the president of a basketball team. These kids can do many things through sports.”
Or maybe they will be inspired by the world-class artists on stage. That’s the idea, after all. To give a sense of encouragement. When he was a kid, Ujiri was pushed to explore. What he found was a lifetime of success thanks to the game of basketball. Now, he’s giving that opportunity to others through culture and hoops. But just don’t ask Ujiri if he thinks about his own legacy. “I don’t like the word,” he says. “That’s for big people. That’s for legends. There’s so much work to be done everywhere, whether it’s the NBA or it’s in Africa or however we grow.”
It’s going to take a lot of energy, of course. But Ujiri has that in droves.
“People think I’m 55,” Masai Ujiri says, with a chuckle. “I’m actually 25—but don’t tell anybody!”
Photo by Giants of Africa
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