CHICAGO (AP) — DeMar DeRozan raised his arms and waved to the roaring crowd following a video tribute during a timeout.
The six-time All-Star made a triumphant return to Chicago on Sunday. He scored 21 points in Sacramento's 124-119 victory over the Bulls, helping the Kings extend their season-high win streak to seven games.
“The first moment I came here, I tried to give my all to this organization, to this city,” DeRozan said. “I think it showed. You can't fake it when you're genuinely putting everything into representing the Bulls. When I came here, I just think it showed. I embodied the culture of Chicago — everything. It showed. When people see that, you get the genuine reaction in return.”
DeRozan spent nine years in Toronto and three in San Antonio before signing an $85 million contract with the Bulls prior to the 2021-22 season, so this wasn't his first homecoming. Though it didn't quite rank up there with his first road game against the Raptors, his return to Chicago was still a heartfelt affair.
DeRozan said he had “a renewed ambition” when he joined the Bulls. He was an All-Star in his first two seasons with the team. He became the first NBA player to hit buzzer-beaters on consecutive days when he nailed winning 3-pointers against Indiana on Dec. 31, 2021, and against Washington the following day.
But DeRozan's impact went beyond the shots he made — often after a head fake drew his defender into the air. He was like a big brother in the locker room, particularly for younger players like Patrick Williams, Coby White and Ayo Dosunmu. DeRozan was known to host them in Los Angeles during the offseason for grueling workouts and time with his family.
“It makes you question what you're in it for and if you really want to do this,” Williams said. “You're seeing somebody at that level, what he does in the summers to prepare. To me, it was kind of a mental question, like, is this what I want to do. If I say I wanna be the best, this is what the best do. Well, then that's what I'm doing. There's nothing else to really talk about. But I just thank him for kind of showing me that.”
Bulls coach Billy Donovan said DeRozan was “very, very unique the way he led." So was Chris Paul, who played for him in Oklahoma City.
“They're different," Donovan said. "But they're both great leaders. I think the biggest thing in leadership is each guy's got to stay true to who they are. I think there's probably a lot of pearls of wisdom that all those guys have taken from DeMar, but they've also got to be authentic and true to who they are instead of maybe saying ‘I’m gonna lead like DeMar.'”
DeRozan said he considered the younger players to be his “sons.”
“They’re still my sons,” he said. “To see them grow, mature, even me talking to them now means the world to me because the respect will forever be there.”
On Sunday, there was plenty of respect shown for DeRozan.
“It was cool just to be able to have an opportunity to come back to a place where they loved you, appreciated you," he said. “My three years here felt like 10. I enjoyed my time here. It was fun just going out there talking trash to all the guys that I played with last year, just to see the fans and everything. It was definitely cool.” ___
AP NBA: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NBA
Andrew Seligman, The Associated Press
