Though they're no longer with the organization, Toronto Raptors president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri is giving credit to Dwane Casey and DeMar DeRozan for their roles in the team's success.

“Give Dwane Casey credit for preparing us for this,” Ujiri told Ben Golliver of The Washington Post. “Dwane Casey and DeMar DeRozan are a part of this journey.”

Casey served as the Raptors' head coach from 2011 until 2018. His first two seasons with the team were less than impressive. In fact, Toronto missed the playoffs in both of those campaigns. However, Casey eventually led his team into postseason contention.

In 2016, Casey became the first Raptors head coach to record 200 career wins. Later that year, he led the team to its first Game 7 victory in the NBA Playoffs, defeating the Indiana Pacers in the first round. Toronto's run of success in that season ended in the Eastern Conference Finals, though, as they where they were defeated by the eventual champion Cleveland Cavaliers.

Even after improving Toronto's record for several consecutive seasons and earning Coach of the Year honors, Casey was fired. He wasn't without work for long, though. The Detroit Pistons offered him a five-year deal in June of 2018, which he accepted.

DeRozan's stint with Toronto came to an end on July 18, 2018, when he and Jakob Pöltl were traded to the San Antonio Spurs for Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green. It was a sad time for a lot of Raptors fans, as DeRozan had become a beloved member of the team.

DeRozan finished the 2017-18 campaign as Toronto's leader in several categories, including regular season games played, wins, total minutes, field goals (attempted and made), and free throws (attempted and made).

Casey and DeRozan may be gone now, but it's nice to see Ujiri giving them credit for the roles they played leading the Raptors to this point.