What a lesson from DeMar DeRozan ! As the Spurs pushed the Bulls to their limits, the All-Star took matters into his own hands again, scoring 13 points in the first four minutes of the fourth quarter, before Gregg Popovich sent in strikes at two… which he used to serve his teammates.
He thus finished the match with 40 points at 16/24 shooting, without any 3-point shot, and 7 assists!
“To be honest, I love having a warm hand because I don’t have to shoot anymore” he also explained after the victory. “I can then attract attention and offer shots. This is my approach to the fourth quarters. Be aggressive. To mark. Whether it’s going to the throw line or my spots, to force the defense to make choices. And from there, I can dissect her by making passes. “
An ability to play with opposing defenses that once again impresses his coach, Billy Donovan.
“What’s incredible is not only his ability to score at this level, it’s his game intelligence” details the coach. “He generates a lot of things in attack. Clearly, after four or five minutes in the last quarter, they decided to trap him, to force him to let go of the ball. But he does not force anything, he makes the right choice. When they started trapping him, he immediately saw it. And he found the openings. He didn’t try to dribble out of the double-team or do anything that could have caused him to lose the ball. That says a lot about his talent. Thinking, ‘Okay, I’m on an amazing show. But instead of forcing two guys, I’m going to find someone who’s open. Let’s go find the open player’. “
A surgeon in full control
DeMar DeRozan seems to have reached his individual fullness. He masters his strengths to perfection. Opposing defenders are always surprised by great players, but really great players are those who you know what they’re going to do, but who are still unstoppable. This is where the old Raptor currently sits.
“It’s not just about the points. I think it’s for me the comfort of being the player that I am in my 13th year in the NBA. Trust. The feeling. The teammates that I have. The organization. I’m just taking all of that into account. It’s something that suits me well. Not just scoring points. I have always scored points. It’s the fact of being able to be free and still play at a high level. “
With this sixth game in a row at more than 35 points, at more than 50% success, DeMar DeRozan joins Wilt Chamberlain in history, only “The Stilt” having reached such a level of efficiency…
For Billy Donovan, the effectiveness of his leader is “breathtaking” while the person concerned, who had nevertheless started the match with a 1/6 shot, describes his way of adapting and correcting the problems during the match like a surgeon, who constantly analyzes all the factors to find the good fixes.
“There are so many things that come to mind when I miss a shot. Did I put enough effect? Was it short? Did it come out of my hand wrong? Was it my positioning, my rhythm? It’s just that I need to figure it out for the next shot, so I know what to do. “
| DeMar DeRozan | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2009-10 | TOR | 77 | 22 | 49.8 | 25.0 | 76.3 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 2.9 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 8.6 |
| 2010-11 | TOR | 82 | 35 | 46.7 | 9.6 | 81.3 | 0.9 | 2.9 | 3.8 | 1.8 | 2.7 | 1.0 | 1.8 | 0.4 | 17.2 |
| 2011-12 | TOR | 63 | 35 | 42.2 | 26.1 | 81.0 | 0.6 | 2.7 | 3.4 | 2.0 | 2.6 | 0.8 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 16.7 |
| 2012-13 | TOR | 82 | 37 | 44.5 | 28.3 | 83.1 | 0.6 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 2.5 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 1.8 | 0.3 | 18.1 |
| 2013-14 | TOR | 79 | 38 | 42.9 | 30.5 | 82.4 | 0.7 | 3.7 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 2.5 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 22.7 |
| 2014-15 | TOR | 60 | 35 | 41.3 | 28.4 | 83.2 | 0.7 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 3.5 | 2.0 | 1.2 | 2.3 | 0.2 | 20.1 |
| 2015-16 | TOR | 78 | 36 | 44.6 | 33.8 | 85.0 | 0.8 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 23.5 |
| 2016-17 | TOR | 74 | 35 | 46.7 | 26.6 | 84.2 | 1.0 | 4.3 | 5.2 | 3.9 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 2.4 | 0.2 | 27.3 |
| 2017-18 | TOR | 80 | 34 | 45.6 | 31.0 | 82.5 | 0.7 | 3.2 | 3.9 | 5.2 | 1.9 | 1.1 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 23.0 |
| 2018-19 | SAN | 77 | 35 | 48.1 | 15.6 | 83.0 | 0.7 | 5.3 | 6.0 | 6.2 | 2.3 | 1.1 | 2.6 | 0.5 | 21.2 |
| 2019-20 | SAN | 68 | 34 | 53.1 | 25.7 | 84.5 | 0.7 | 4.9 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 2.7 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 0.3 | 22.1 |
| 2020-21 | SAN | 61 | 34 | 49.5 | 25.7 | 88.0 | 0.7 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 6.9 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 0.3 | 21.6 |
| 2021-22 | CHI | 53 | 36 | 51.2 | 33.7 | 86.2 | 0.9 | 4.4 | 5.3 | 5.1 | 2.2 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 0.3 | 27.7 |
| Total | 934 | 34 | 46.4 | 28.5 | 83.5 | 0.8 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 2.3 | 1.0 | 2.1 | 0.3 | 20.6 | |
