Kobe Bryant White ran around the court at the Capital One Arena, his arms outstretched and his long hair fluttering in the wind; Nikola Vucevic's arms pointed straight into the sky, and he maintained that position long after the final hit; the other Bulls teammates had surrounded DeRozan and once again embraced their hero warmly.
Zach Lavin was stunned: "I was stunned. For the past two days, we seem to have been on the roller coaster. He (DeRozan) scored a deadlock in a back-to-back match, which was beyond my imagination. ”
This really can't be blamed on Lavine for being lonely. Because in recorded history, DeRozan has become the first player in NBA history to complete a back-to-back game — Channing Frye also contributed back-to-back kills when he played for the Suns, but his fatal blow left his opponent with 6.6 seconds, not a literal whistle kill; Larry Bird completed a whistle-to-whistle kill in two consecutive games in January 1985, but two days apart in those two games, not back-to-back. And DeRozan's two back-to-back kills went straight from 2021 to 2022.
DeRozan's heroic performance in the final minutes of the game has become commonplace for Bulls fans, who is still the league's fourth-quarter leading scorer. Compared to his own self, who averaged 27.3 points per game in 2017, DeRozan is now more experienced, more measured, more technical and more strategic. Defenders always seem helpless when he's holding the ball in the mid-range: he can tackle the basket, he can shoot from mid-range, he can foul through skill, and now he's shot a crucial three-point shootout in two consecutive games, and no matter what kind of defender he faces, he can always find a trick to defeat the enemy.
Most importantly, his mindset now seems peaceful. Such calm is especially important for a team as young as the Bulls. In the first three quarters against the Pacers, DeRozan scored just 15 points on 4-of-16 shooting, and his teammate Zach Lavin did not fare much better, with Ronzo Ball and Caruso both missing due to injury and rebounding by the Pacers. At the end of the third quarter, the Bulls only led by one point. But DeRozan didn't panic at all: "I firmly believe that as long as the game is not over, I still have a chance. The game is like this, it can't go along with your heart. There are always times when you feel like you're having a hard time, but as long as you have time, you can always find a way to win. ”
Sure enough, in the final quarter, the familiar king of the fourth quarter returned, scoring 10 points in the final quarter, and then with 7 seconds left in the game, the team was 1 point behind and he got the last shot.
"I looked at Zach and he looked at me too, but the other side was very tight on his defense, so I didn't pass the ball to him. Then Vucevic came and gave me cover, preventing his men from delaying a bit. For a moment, I was going to pass the ball to him. But when I looked up at the timer, I thought maybe there wasn't enough time, so I said to myself, 'Okay, I've got to do something'. ”
A crotch dribble, stride to the right, left foot jump side flutter shot. Lights on the ball to score. A lot of people think it's a stroke of luck because he didn't hit two previous three-point shots because his shooting moves aren't standard. But DeRozan himself knew that there was certainly an element of luck in the ball that ended up in the basket, but the most important thing was his years of hard work — in his own words, the result of my on the training ground.
"I always try to shoot different ways and experience different shooting sensations. Shoot on the right shoulder, shoot on the left shoulder, shoot after a fake swing, drift shot, step back shot. As long as you practice a lot, you can master that rhythm. ”
The killer of the Wizards was the reward of his training: a basic turnaround, a calm shot fake, a quick but not hurried bottom corner jump shot. You only see him throw this one, but you don't know how many he's practiced for this one. When those efforts turn into muscle memories, you can see his footsteps in the bits and pieces on the DeRozan pitch, his basic skills, the way he maintains a sense of balance and, above all, his consistent intelligence and peace: "Defending me is a young man who will eat my fake moves." What's more, this fake action allows me to create space and time for my legs to come together so I can get enough strength to throw the ball out. Finally I glanced at my feet to make sure I wasn't stepping on the three-point line. Everything went according to plan and I felt like I had done everything I could and that was enough. ”
The young Lavin was somewhat envious of this peace: "He always played in an orderly manner. His speed is not fast, but every movement is like a work of art. Time is running out, but you definitely won't urge him to hurry up, because you know, he can always use his set to get his opponents. ”
The 26-year-old Lavin will envy the 32-year-old DeRozan, but he doesn't know what DeRozan has experienced for this. DeRozan hasn't been named an All-Star since swapping clubs with Leonard in the summer of 2018. He improved his game at the Spurs — though not everyone could see it. He shot 53.1 percent from the field in the Spurs' second year and averaged 6.9 assists per game in his third year. But when the league was looking for a player to make a comeback to the All-Star, they looked for Mike Conley instead of DeRozan.
During his three years in San Antonio, DeRo favored the Invisible Man for the league. There are a lot of people who haven't seen his ball much, who still have stereotypes about him, that he can't shoot three-pointers, that he's not suitable for this era, that can't pull out space, that the ball-holding organization isn't top-notch enough, and that the defense isn't good enough. They won't see how DeRozan has improved his dribbling and passing in a high-pressure environment, nor do they know that he's slowed down his game, played smarter, and learned to control the game on his own rather than let instinct control himself.
DeRozan had a connection with the Lakers last summer, but when the Lakers learned they had a chance to get Westbrook, they immediately abandoned him, which revealed two messages: The Lakers' management was neither optimistic about his suitability in a multi-core team nor doubted his own stardom.
After joining the Bulls and going through a few practice sessions, Billy Donovan immediately fought for him: "I've heard some people say that Demar is not used to modern basketball, which is simply outrageous. He's a great basketball player and can adapt to any system. He can pass the ball, has a good field of vision, can play low singles, can block and dismantle, can shoot mid-range. He's the kind of athlete who can adapt quickly in any system, and he can always clearly find his own position and figure out what he needs to do, which is much more important than simply being able to run and jump or shoot three-pointers. ”
There is an ancient saying in martial arts: Practice martial arts without practicing exercises, until the old one is empty. In the NBA, we've seen too many of these cases. When an athlete who once flew away grew older, or was plagued by injuries and his physical function declined, how many people could eliminate these negative factors through their own study of skills and the growth of experience, and even fight with the old man of time in turn, and finally go to a higher level and usher in the second spring of their careers? If he did, how much time and sweat did such an athlete who constantly improved his skills and was willing to change his habits in order to win?
DeRozan has had a bad last few years. He experienced Ugerry's "betrayal", the disdain of the fans, and the disregard of the media. He suffered from depression at one point, but he never sold misery and only spoke with his own games. He's used his best performances in the final quarter to help the Bulls win at least eight games this season. In the game he returned to Toronto at the beginning of the season, he scored 11 points in the late quarter to prevent the team from collapsing in the final quarter; in two games against the Lakers and Clippers in Los Angeles, he played a dominant performance; in the beginning of December, he destroyed the Knicks and Nets in New York; at home against the Lakers, he scored 38 points and shot the key goal that determined the game on the head of his old opponent James. Then we saw these two kills. Through these two deadly games, the Bulls struggled to increase the number of consecutive wins to 7. Now with 24 wins and 10 losses, they are ranked first in the East, one win ahead of the Nets, and have a win-loss advantage against the Nets. Less than halfway through the season, he's making NBA history.
Melon and Bryant have also completed 6 kills in a season. They were all chosen sons, and from the day they entered the NBA, no one doubted whether they could become superstars. But what happened to DeRozan is a completely different story. People initially called him "Trash Brothers" and later completely ignored his presence, and when he came to Chicago, people ridiculed the Bulls management who gave him a 3-year, 85 million contract. Just three months later, when he really became the leading big brother of the first team in the East, the contrast was so abrupt that people didn't even have time to prepare mentally. Now that the media's head-to-head worship is contrasted with their dismissive look at DeRozan three months ago, it's easy to feel magical.
Of course, if the playoffs start now, to play a 7-game series, you probably still don't think he can beat Durant or Alphabet Brother. Curry led the way in the MVP discussions, followed by Durant, but if the Bulls' record remains here, as a versatile but once difficult to define and recognize athlete, people will no longer discuss whether he should be selected as an All-Star, but will add DeRozan's name to the list of MVP candidates.
After taking down the Wizards, the reporter handed the microphone to Lavin: "Now that you are the first in the East, how do you feel now?" ”
Lavin laughed, and that smile was meaningful: "Thank God, Demar DeRozan is on our team." ”