Raptors 905 announced Wednesday that they have promoted Chad Sanders to the role of general manager.
“As much as the 905 has a hand in developing our young Raptors on the court, it plays equally as large of a role in the development of our up-and-coming staff members. Chad becomes just the latest in an already long line of Raptors staffers to utilize the 905 to move up within our ranks,”said Dan Tolzman. “After just one season as a member of our team, Chad showed us he was capable of taking on this challenge, and with his previous experience at the college and international levels, we’re confident that he will do an exceptional job with the 905 program.”
Sanders joined the organization in 2017-18 as the team’s manager of basketball operations. Prior to joining the 905, he was a member of the Dominican Republic national program for six seasons, eventually working his way up to direction of operations and then general manager. During that time, Dominican Republic rose from 27th to 17th in the FIBA men’s world rankings. He was also the general manager of Leones de Santo Domingo, winning a title there in 2016.
A University of Kentucky grad, he was a basketball manager under both Tubby Smith and Billy Gillispie as well as a graduate assistant under John Calipari. Still just 31, he continues a trend of the Raptors’ organization under Masai Ujiri skewing quite young in decision-making positions.
Sanders takes over the role from Dan Tolzman, who has risen to assistant general manager and vice president of player personnel on the Toronto Raptors side. Tolzman has been the team’s general manager for it’s entire existence, helping build the program and swiftly guide them to a G League Championship and then another finals berth.
The job Sanders is taking on is not an easy one, as the consistent tumult of the G League offers a number of challenges. After a year of interacting with him, the impression I’ve gotten is that he’s entirely capable and ready to take the reins.
