DeMar DeRozan

On April 8, 2009, DeRozan announced his decision to enter the 2009 NBA draft and forgo his final three years of eligibility at USC.[10] On June 25, 2009, he was selected ninth overall by the Toronto Raptors in the 2009 draft.[11] He stated that part of the reason he left for the NBA after only one year at USC was to help take better care of his mother, who suffers from lupus.[11]

On July 9, 2009, DeRozan signed his rookie scale contract with the Raptors.[12] As the fourth contestant in the 2010 Sprite Slam Dunk Competition, DeRozan lost in the final round against three-time champion Nate Robinson. The final percentage was 51% to 49%. DeRozan was selected to compete for the 2011 Sprite Slam Dunk Competition as a replacement for injured guard Brandon Jennings. He finished in third place.

On December 31, 2010, DeRozan scored a then career-high 37 points against the Houston Rockets. He matched that career high two more times over the next three years—against the Utah Jazz on November 12, 2012, and against the Chicago Bulls on November 15, 2013.

On January 22, 2014, DeRozan scored a then career-high 40 points against the Dallas Mavericks, shooting 15-of-22 from the field. On January 30, DeRozan was selected for the 2014 NBA All-Star Game as a reserve guard for the Eastern Conference All-Star team. He finished the game with 8 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists in 15 minutes. On February 1, he recorded a 36 points and a career-high 12 assists in a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers. On March 28, he led the Raptors to a playoff berth for the first time since 2008, with a victory over the Boston Celtics. He scored 30 points in the win, along with 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 1 steal. On April 13, he scored 30 points against the Detroit Pistons to lead the Raptors to tie a franchise record of 47 wins.

DeRozan's 2013–14 season was a breakout year, averaging career-highs of 22.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 30% from beyond the arc, and finished fourth in total free-throws made and seventh in attempts. He led the Raptors to a 48–34 record and a third-seed finish in the Eastern Conference.

In DeRozan's first playoff game against the Brooklyn Nets on April 19, 2014, DeRozan scored 14 points on a 3-of-13 shooting as the game resulted in a loss. In Game 2, DeRozan bounced back and scored 30 points on 9-of-21 shooting in a 100–95 win. On April 25, he recorded 30 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in a loss. That 30-point game made DeRozan the first Raptor to score 30 points in back-to-back playoffs games, and the first Raptor to score 30 in multiple playoff games since Vince Carter. The Raptors went on to lose to the Nets in seven games.

In the Raptors' season opening game of the 2014–15 season against the Atlanta Hawks in Toronto, DeRozan recorded career-highs with 11 rebounds and six steals, along with 15 points, in a 109–102 win.[13] On November 29, 2014, he was ruled out indefinitely with a torn left adductor longus tendon. He sustained the injury the night before at the 8:23 mark of the third quarter against the Dallas Mavericks and did not return.[14] On January 14, 2015, he returned to action, scoring 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting in a 100–84 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.[15] On March 2, he scored a season-high 35 points in a 114–103 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.[16] On March 30, DeRozan scored a career-high 42 points in a 99–96 win over the Houston Rockets.[17] On April 17, he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for April, joining Kyle Lowry (December 2014) and Chris Bosh (January 2007) as the only players in team history to be named Player of the Month.[18]

On April 24, in Game 3 of the Raptors' first-round playoff series with the Washington Wizards, DeRozan scored a playoff career-high 32 points while scoring a franchise playoff-record 20 points in the first quarter, surpassing Vince Carter's previous record of 19 points in a first quarter of a playoff game.[19]

On November 10, 2015, DeRozan scored a then season-high 29 points in a loss to the New York Knicks. Reaching the 15-point mark for the eighth straight game to start the season, he became the first Raptor since Chris Bosh in 2009–10 to accomplish the feat.[20] On December 14, DeRozan was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played December 7–13, earning the honor for the first time in his seven-year career and became the seventh player in team history to be named Player of the Week.[21] On January 8, he scored a then season-high 35 points in a 97–88 win over the Washington Wizards.[22] On January 28, he was named an Eastern Conference All-Star reserve for the 2016 NBA All-Star Game, earning his second All-Star nod in three years.[23][24] On February 2, DeRozan and teammate Kyle Lowry were selected as co-winners for Eastern Conference Player of the Month for January. The pair helped the Raptors go 12–2 during the month and recorded a franchise-record 11-game win streak.[25] On February 22, he became the winningest player in Raptors history, passing Chris Bosh and Morris Peterson with his 233rd career win. With 22 points, he helped the Raptors defeat the New York Knicks 122–95.[26] On March 4, he scored a season-high 38 points in a 117–115 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. In that game, he set an NBA record with 24 consecutive free throws made in one game.[27] On March 12, he tied his season-high of 38 points while also recording 10 rebounds and seven assists in a 112–104 overtime win over the Miami Heat.[28] On March 30, he scored 26 points in a 105–97 win over the Atlanta Hawks, helping the Raptors record a 50-win season for the first time in franchise history.[29] On April 10, he scored 27 points in a 93–89 win over the New York Knicks in New York, setting a franchise record with 23 road victories in a season. DeRozan also moved ahead of Vince Carter for second on the Raptors' career scoring list, trailing only Chris Bosh.[30]

The Raptors finished the regular season as the second seed in the Eastern Conference with a 56–26 record. In the first round of the playoffs, the Raptors faced the seventh-seeded Indiana Pacers, and in a Game 5 win on April 26, DeRozan scored 34 points to help the Raptors take a 3–2 series lead.[31] In Game 7 of the series, DeRozan scored 30 points to help the Raptors win a best-of-seven series for the first time in franchise history. With a 4–3 series victory over the Pacers, the Raptors moved on to the second round to face the Miami Heat.[32] In Game 5 of the Raptors' series with the Heat, DeRozan again scored 34 points to help the Raptors take a 3–2 series lead with a 99–91 win.[33] In Game 7 of the series, he scored 28 points in a 116–89 win over the Heat, helping the Raptors advance to the conference finals for the first time in franchise history.[34] In Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers, DeRozan scored 32 points to help the Raptors win 105–99 and tie the series at 2–2.[35] The Raptors went on to lose the next two games to bow out of the playoffs with a 4–2 defeat.

DeRozan shooting a jumpshot over Bradley Beal in 2016

On July 14, 2016, DeRozan re-signed with the Raptors to a five-year, $139 million contract.[36][37] In the Raptors' season opener on October 26, 2016, DeRozan had his third career 40-point outing in a 109–91 win over the Detroit Pistons.[38] Two days later, he had a 32-point effort in a 94–91 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. DeRozan's combined 72 points bested Vince Carter's franchise record of 65 for the most points through the first two games of a season, set in the 2003–04 season.[39] With a 33-point effort on October 31 against the Denver Nuggets, DeRozan became the first ever Raptor with three straight 30-point games to begin a season.[40] With 40 points against the Washington Wizards on November 2, DeRozan tied Mike James' franchise record with four consecutive 30-point games.[41] He passed that mark two days later, scoring 34 points in a 96–87 win over the Miami Heat. His five straight 30-point games set the best such start to a season since Michael Jordan did it for six straight games to open the 1986–87 season.[42] On November 12, he scored 33 points against the New York Knicks for his eighth 30-point game in nine games, becoming only the fourth player to register 30-plus points in eight of the first nine games of a season, joining Michael Jordan, World B. Free and Tiny Archibald.[43] With 34 points against the Golden State Warriors on November 16, DeRozan became the first NBA player with nine 30-point games in his team's first 11 games since Jordan in 1987–88.[44] DeRozan's six field goals against the Los Angeles Lakers on December 2 saw him pass Vince Carter (3,536) for second on the franchise's all-time list; Chris Bosh still led at the time with 3,614.[45] On December 28, he scored 29 points against Golden State and became Toronto's career scoring leader (10,290), passing Chris Bosh's 10,275 points.[46]

On January 8, 2017, DeRozan scored 36 points in a 129–122 loss to the Houston Rockets, setting a career high with his 18th 30-plus-point game of the season.[47] Two days later, he recorded a season-high 41 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in a 114–106 win over the Boston Celtics.[48] On January 19, DeRozan was named a starter on the Eastern Conference All-Star team for the 2017 NBA All-Star Game,[49][50] becoming the fourth Raptors player to be named a starter after Vince Carter, Chris Bosh and Kyle Lowry.[51] On February 6, 2017, after missing seven of the team's previous eight games with a sprained ankle, DeRozan shot 50 percent from the field and put up 31 points in a 118–109 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.[52] On February 24, he scored a career-high 43 points to help the Raptors rally from a 17-point deficit to beat the Boston Celtics 107–97. DeRozan shot 15 of 28 from the floor as he surpassed his 42-point effort against the Houston Rockets on March 30, 2015.[53] After scoring 42 points against Chicago on March 21, DeRozan scored 40 points against Miami two days later, thus registering back-to-back 40-point games for the first time in his career.[54] On March 31, he scored 40 points in a 111–100 win over the Indiana Pacers. It was DeRozan's seventh 40-point game of the season and 30th game of 30 points or more, tying Vince Carter's 2000–01 franchise mark.[55] With 38 points against Miami on April 7, DeRozan broke Carter's franchise record with his 31st 30-point game of the season.[56] On April 9, DeRozan shot 11-for-15 from the field for 35 points against the New York Knicks and became the second player in franchise history with a 2,000-point season—Carter scored 2,107 in 1999–00 and 2,070 in 2000–01. The win over the Knicks was the Raptors' 50th of the season and helped them lock up at least the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference.[57] DeRozan finished the season with a career-high 2,020 points, while his 27.3 average marked the second highest in franchise history—Carter averaged 27.6 in 2000–01.[58]

On April 27, 2017, DeRozan scored 32 points in a 92–89 win over the Milwaukee Bucks, helping the Raptors take their first-round playoff series in six games.[59] The Raptors went on to lose in a clean sweep to the Cavaliers in the second round. DeRozan appeared in all 10 playoff games, averaging 22.4 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game.[60] On May 18, 2017, DeRozan was named in the All-NBA Third Team for the first time in his career.[61]

DeRozan in 2018

On November 3, 2017, DeRozan scored 37 points in a 109–100 win over the Utah Jazz, with 17 points and his third career four-point play coming in the third quarter.[62] On December 13, 2017, he matched his season high with 37 points in a 115–109 win over the Phoenix Suns.[63] On December 21, 2017, he set a career high with 45 points in a 114–109 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. He also set a career high with six 3-pointers in nine attempts.[64] On January 1, 2018, DeRozan scored a franchise-record 52 points to help the Raptors beat the Milwaukee Bucks 131–127 in overtime, matching the team record with their 12th consecutive home victory. DeRozan became the third player in Raptors history to score 50 or more in a single game—the others being Vince Carter and Terrence Ross, who each had 51.[65] On January 8, 2018, he scored 35 points, including a go-ahead three-point play with 26.1 seconds left in overtime, to lift the Raptors to a 114–113 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[66] On January 13, 2018, he had a 42-point effort in a 127–125 loss to the Golden State Warriors.[67] On January 18, 2018, DeRozan was chosen to as an NBA All-Star starter for the second consecutive season, marking his fourth overall selection to the game, leaving him third overall in franchise history behind Vince Carter and Chris Bosh, both of whom had been selected on five occasions.[68] On February 1, 2018, he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Month for January.[69] On February 2, 2018, he scored 35 points in a 130–105 win over the Portland Trail Blazers. DeRozan made 11 of 22 shots and matched his career high by making six 3-pointers to finish 6 for 10 from long range.[70] On March 7, 2018, he scored 42 points in a 121–119 overtime win over the Detroit Pistons.[71]

In Game 2 of the Raptors' first-round playoff series against the Washington Wizards, DeRozan matched his career playoff-high with 37 points, as Toronto took a 2–0 lead in a playoff series for the first time in franchise history with a 130–119 win. It was his 12th career 30-point game in the postseason.[72] In Game 4, DeRozan recorded 35 points, six assists and six rebounds in a 106–98 loss.[73] The Raptors went on to win the series in six games. In the second round, the Raptors were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers. For the season, DeRozan was named to the All-NBA Second Team.[74] DeRozan finished the 2017–18 season as the franchise leader in a number of categories, including regular season games played, wins, total minutes, field goals both attempted and made, and free throws both made and attempted.[75]

On July 18, 2018, DeRozan was traded, along with Jakob Poeltl and a protected 2019 first round draft pick, to the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.[76] In his debut for the Spurs in their season opener on October 17, 2018, DeRozan had 28 points in a 112–108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.[77] On October 22, he had 32 points and 14 assists in a 143–142 overtime win over the Los Angeles Lakers.[78] On October 29, he had 34 points and nine assists in a 113–108 overtime win over the Dallas Mavericks.[79] On November 3, he scored 26 points in a 109–95 win over the New Orleans Pelicans, thus scoring at least 25 points in seven of the team's first eight games. The only other San Antonio player to do so was George Gervin in 1978–79.[80] With 18 points against the Houston Rockets on November 30, DeRozan became the first San Antonio player to score in double figures in each of his first 22 games since David Robinson did so as a rookie in 1989.[81] On December 2, he had a season-high 36 points in a 131–118 win over the Portland Trail Blazers.[82] On December 7, he recorded 36 points and nine assists in a 133–120 win over the Lakers.[83] On January 3, he recorded his first career triple-double with 21 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists in a 125–107 win over his former team, the Toronto Raptors. He became the first San Antonio player with a triple-double at home since Tim Duncan in 2003, and the first Spurs player to have at least 15 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a half since Duncan in 2007. DeRozan also recorded his first double-double in a half.[84] On February 7, he scored 35 points in a 127–118 loss to the Trail Blazers.[85] On February 22, he played his first game in Toronto in a Spurs uniform. He finished the game with 23 points, 4 rebounds and 8 assists.

• 2006 All-Moore League First Team
• 2007 All-Moore League First Team
• 2007 Named to the Los Angeles Times First Team
• 2008 Parade Magazine All-America First Team
• 2008 Long Beach Press-Telegram's Best in the West First Team
• 2008 McDonald's High School All-American
• 2008 Jordan Brand All-American Classic
• 2008 Southern California Interscholastic Basketball Coaches Association I-AA Player of the Year (tied with two others)
• 2008 All-State Team
• 2009 Pac-10 Tournament Champion
• 2009 Named Most Outstanding Player in Pac-10 Tournament
• No. 10 retired by USC Trojans

• All-NBA Second Team: 2018
• All-NBA Third Team: 2017
• NBA All-Star: 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018
• NBA All-Star Rising Star: 2011
• NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Month: April 2015, January 2016, January 2018
• NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week: December 7–13, 2015; November 7–13, 2016; December 12–18, 2016; January 9–15, 2017; March 20–26, 2017; November 13–19, 2017; December 18–24, 2017; January 1–7, 2018; February 26 – March 4, 2018
• NBA Western Conference Player of the Week: January 6-12, 2020[86]