DeMar DeRozan on the Raptors reasoning for trading him: ‘It’s B.S. to me’

DeMar DeRozan was unceremoniously traded to the San Antonio Spurs as the highlight of a package for Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green. And in DeRozan’s first interview since the move, he sat down with ESPN’s Chris Haynes to open up about the trade he maintains he never saw coming, even after he asked Raptors’ general manager Masai Ujiri multiple times to keep him in the loop with any pending trade developments.

“All summer through the talks we had -- through the talks he had with my agent -- you know, it seemed like I was in that discussion of moving forward with the team,” he said. “My whole approach every summer was preparing, going out there and supporting the young guys at summer league, figuring out ways I can be better, make my team better, and that was the gist of the conversations we had with moving forward. Having the opportunity to do something special all over again, you know? So that was my mindset and everybody around me’s mindset as well.”

“I asked, ‘Was I going to be traded? Was there anything going on, if it was a chance I’d be traded?’ And on multiple occasions it was, ‘No, it was nothing.’ If it is, then let the agent know.”

DeRozan found two letters to sum up his experience being traded from the only team he’s ever known after Ujiri said he had given the old Raptors team “chances” to win big: “B.S.”

Haynes: “In that same news conference, he talked about how he gave the team a chance when he took his role. Do you think it was necessary for the organization to make that move and trade you? Why didn’t things work out?”

DeRozan: “I mean, when you say “them,” that’s kind of frustrating. Like, who is “them”? You put the blame on just me and Casey? Because obviously we are the only two who had to suffer from the loss that we had in the Cleveland series. But it’s only one team that we lost to in the postseason -- and that team went to the [NBA] Finals every single year. With an opportunity approaching itself, my mindset and the rest of my teammates’ mindset was the only guy who was in the way of making that happen leaves. Now we got a great opportunity to do something that we haven’t been able to do. At the end of the day, I gave everything I had to that team. And it showed, it showed in the progress we made as a team and me as an individual. So when you put that out there saying “gave them chances” and “I have to do something” ... it’s B.S. to me.”

How did the Raptors and DeRozan fall apart?

The Raptors were swept out of the playoffs by LeBron James a second straight time, and Ujiri decided something had to change. First he fired head coach Dwane Casey and promoted assistant coach Nick Nurse. Then he decided to shake the roster up, but trading his superstar for another couldn’t have gone the way he envisioned. Toronto sent DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a 2019 protected first-round pick to San Antonio for Leonard and Danny Green, but the Raptors did not include a thank you for DeRozan’s accomplishments in their press release for the trade. He’s the leading scorer in franchise history, a player who made it cool to play in Toronto again. Ujiri later apologized for how he handled the trade, but the damage was already done.

DeRozan said he and his agent had kept in contact with Ujiri throughout this process but were not given a heads up that a trade was on the way. After taking less than the max when re-signing in Toronto on a five-year, $139 million deal in 2016, DeRozan felt disrespected.

“I felt like I wasn’t treated with what I sacrificed for nine years, with the respect that I thought I deserved. By just giving me the say so of letting me know something’s going on or it’s a chance. That’s all I wanted. That’s all I wanted. I’m not saying, ‘You don’t have to trade me’ or ... just let me know something is going on because I sacrificed everything. Just let me know. That’s all I asked. Everybody know I’m the most low-maintenance person in the world. Just let me know, so I can prepare myself for whatever my next chapter is, and I didn’t get that.”

Now DeRozan will look for a fresh start in San Antonio

What’s in the past now is in the past, and DeRozan will continue his career under head coach Gregg Popovich in San Antonio. That Spurs team will be tasked with remaining competitive in the toughened Western Conference despite trading their best player. Luckily, DeRozan thinks it’ll be an easy transition to a new head coach.

“I’ve always been a fan of Pop. There was just something about him from the way he ran his team, the way he coached, his credibility. Everything that stands out about Pop, you just have to love. So to have this opportunity to play with a legendary coach at this point in my career, I think it’s one of those blessings that’s in disguise because this is a cool moment to be with a guy like that. I’ve been with Case for the majority of my career. He gave me the ultimate freedom to be myself. First thing Case said to me when the move was made is I’m going to love Pop. To hear that from my coach, on the transition to my new coach, just makes it easy.”

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