What do you think about when you think about basketball in Canada? What memories do you think of? Who do you think of? Canada has seen the game of basketball constantly grow and produce more and more talented players. None of that could’ve been possible without the influence of the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors have been the only Canadian basketball team for decades now and they are Canada’s team. A lot of Raptors players have influenced the younger generation to get into basketball and play it more. Players like Vince Carter, Kawhi Leonard, and the greatest Raptor of all time (GROAT) Kyle Lowry are names that people are inspired by in Canada.
However, there is one player who influenced basketball in Canada maybe more than anyone. That player is Demar Derozan. While he may not be the GROAT like Kyle Lowry or be a Championship-winning legend like Kawhi Leonard. But Derozan was one of the most loved Toronto Raptors for a long time and has greatly influenced basketball in Canada. He was one of the few star players that actually wanted to stay here. After losing big stars like Vince Carter and Chris Bosh, it almost felt like no one wanted to play in Toronto.
But then Derozan sent out his infamous “Don’t worry, I got us” tweet after Chris Bosh left the team to go to Miami. This tweet meant a lot to many Raptors fans because he was someone who wanted to stay. Someone who wanted to be a Raptor and someone who loved being a Raptor. And he was great when he was here. His great play and hard work inspired many kids to watch and play basketball and at one point he was THE face of Canadian basketball, even though he isn’t from Canada.
Don't worry, I got us…
— DeMar DeRozan (@DeMar_DeRozan) June 29, 2010
However, where he came from is part of what made Derozan the person he is today. Derozan grew up in Compton California in one of the most difficult environments you could grow up in. Compton is one of the biggest gang-affiliated cities in the U.S. It’s tough to get out of that environment due to how much violence goes on. For Derozan, this lifestyle is just what he grew up with. Every time Derozan left the house, his parent were very strict about him getting back at a certain time because he knew every time he left his house could potentially be his last.
Gang life is something Derozan has always had to deal with. Derozan was a part of one the most notorious gangs called the Crips. This gang is rivaled by the Bloods and there is very intense conflict between the two sides. Not being a part of the Crips wasn’t really an option for Derozan either because once you’re in, it’s hard to get out. This type of lifestyle was never easy for Derozan. He had to deal with a lot of death at a very young age. Derozan was attending funerals at a young age and there would even be drive-by shootings at some of these funerals. Yeah, it was that bad.
It was always going to be a difficult journey for Derozan to make it out of this environment as being involved in gang life and even just making it out alive every day was a challenge. But Derozan put in the work to try to do what he could to get out of this situation. His easiest out was through basketball. If he made it as an NBA player then he could get out of that environment. What was the alternative? There really weren’t many other choices for him, if any.
Derozan tried his best to stay out of trouble and stay on the right path which wasn’t easy at times but he was able to do it. A big part of that was his parents keeping him on track. However, that didn’t come without tough times for Derozan and his family. His mother, Diane, was diagnosed with lupus and his father had to deal with many issues including a stroke when Demar was quite young. Despite all of this Derozan was able to keep his head above his shoulders and work towards making it to the league. He went on the be a star in high school and then to college at USC so he could stay close to home. He played very well while at USC and was able to get drafted to the NBA and Derozan made it out of the harsh Compton environment. It was never an easy ride to get there but Derozan did it. He was drafted 9th overall to the Toronto Raptors which was a huge culture shock for him at the time. He had no idea how to handle winters in Toronto and didn’t even have a passport before going. After a while, he figured it out and he quickly started to make Toronto his new home. And boy did the fans ever love that it was his home too.
Derozan put the city on his sleeve and loved Toronto every second he was there. He embraced being a Raptor like no other star before him had. This was the city that gave him a chance and he embraced the city and the city embraced him right back. Derozan had to endure some pretty bad teams but he always stuck with it. He helped build up the Raptors to become a team that could be a contender year after year. Although they got haunted by LeBron James for a few years which kind of led to the downfall of Derozan’s time as a Toronto Raptors, but the Raptors had to make a change and unfortunately, Derozan was the guy who was a part of that change.
In 2019 when the Raptors won the NBA championship, it was a great time and a great thing to see for the country and the growth of basketball in Canada. But while all that was great, it really hurt that Derozan wasn’t on the team that won it. Derozan got many Canadians (including myself) into basketball because he played his heart out every night and he was great when he played in this country
You can attribute a lot of the success of Canadian basketball to the rise of the Canadian national teams and the insane growth in Canadian talent in basketball, but I think a lot of that only happens because of the influence of Demar Derozan. He inspired so many people in various different ways and he continues to do so.
On top of all of this, Derozan is one of the first NBA players (and maybe even one of the first athletes in general) to speak up about dealing with mental health issues. Sports can often be a space that is very masculinized and Derozan was someone who grew up in a very masculinized environment. But despite that, Derozan is trying to change those spaces and let people know that its okay to not be okay.
Demar Derozan is my favourite athlete of all time and he is for many other Canadians. As unfortunate as it is that he didn’t win with the Raptors in 2019, I hope he does eventually get one because he deserves it. And if you didn’t understand what makes Derozan so great, then hopefully this shows you exactly why at one point he was the face of Canadian basketball.