Even at 35 years old and entering his 17th season, DeMar DeRozan remains an All-Star-caliber talent. The explosive guard has now posted 12 straight seasons of 20 or more points per game, demonstrating elite longevity. Despite being one of the league’s older talents, DeRozan is still among the deadliest and most efficient scorers. A lengthy run like this in the NBA doesn’t just happen — it comes through sacrifice.
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Not many professional athletes even make it to year 17, and if they do, they usually aren’t contributing much. That isn’t the case with DeRozan, though, who has been a consistent bright spot for mediocre Sacramento Kings and Chicago Bulls teams over the last few years.
As someone who could only deal with the mental and physical toll for 16 seasons, Dwyane Wade wanted to know DeMar’s secret. By the time he wrapped up his final campaign in 2018-19, D-Wade was completely drained. The Hall of Famer wanted to know what DeRozan has done off the court to keep his body healthy and his mind sharp.
“It’s a year-round thing,” the six-time All-Star explained. “For me, that goes back to making sacrifices. I don’t go out. I don’t drink. I never had a drink in my life … I just always kind of looked at it from the standpoint of like, my whole goal of hooping was I wanna be able to play for as long as I can.”
DeRozan realized early in his career how important taking care of his body was, even when he feels fine. “When I came into the league, I used to make fun of all the old heads, like, ‘Man, why you putting ice on?’ It’s like, ‘Well, I’m telling you, you better start putting ice on before you start to need it.’ I’m like, ‘All right, f*** it! I’m putting ice on, nothing hurting,'” he continued.
The Kings star stressed that taking care of himself is a never-ending cycle. From eating clean to getting enough sleep every day matters. But so far, DeRozan’s regimen has worked as he has yet to suffer a long-term injury in his career. Even with his relative health and on-court success, though, DeRozan still continues to learn about his body and the game.
Sharing how ready he was to hang it up when the time came, D-Wade asked DeRozan how he’s able to keep his mind right this deep into his career. The California native still loves basketball but admitted that the new era of players has challenged his psyche. In his eyes, the love of the game isn’t there like it used to be.
“I think the mental that becomes a challenge for me is when you look around, you see … so many people take the game for granted,” DeRozan explained. “When before, it was always hoop. Everything was hoop. You had to earn everything you did when it came out there on the court.”
The game has certainly changed since the former USC star was drafted by the Toronto Raptors in 2009. DeRozan is one of the last of a dying generation of players who poured everything they had into the game. DeMar may only have a few seasons left in the NBA, but one thing is for sure, he’s going to make the most of it.
