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Toronto Raptors: DeMar DeRozan Feels Disrespected

By Paul McGaughey

Apr 22, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) and center Jonas Valanciunas (17) and guard Kyle Lowry (7) come off the court after a play against the Brooklyn Nets in game two during the first round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. Toronto defeated Brooklyn 100-95. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 22, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Raptors guard DeMar DeRozan (10) and center Jonas Valanciunas (17) and guard Kyle Lowry (7) come off the court after a play against the Brooklyn Nets in game two during the first round of the 2014 NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. Toronto defeated Brooklyn 100-95. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Just for a second there, it appeared as though I wouldn’t have much to talk about in today’s column.

Then SI.com went and made everything better by gradually rolling out their Top 100 NBA Players of 2015 over the course of this week.

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Normally, it would be nothing but good news to hear that four Toronto Raptors made the list, but this year it has created a bit of a stir.

Jonas Valanciunas, who went unranked in 2014, made his debut on the list at No. 80. Forward Amir Johnson jumped 13 spots to No. 71, while Kyle Lowry skyrocketed up the list from No. 81 to No. 30 after his stellar 2013-14 campaign.

Also on the list, and not the least bit surprisingly, is shooting guard DeMar DeRozan.

What was his ranking? He debuted at No. 61.

Judging by his reaction on Twitter, DeRozan is not pleased with this assessment.

Although DeRozan could have been referring to any number of things, it seems pretty clear that he was commenting on this ranking.

According to SI.com, “the rankings were assigned based on a fluid combination of subjective assessment and objective data” and the “sole concern was how players are likely to perform this season alone.”

The explanation for DeRozan’s ranking went as follows:

"“In his most demanding role yet, DeRozan swelled to surpass expectations. His All-Star season was a product of incremental gains in most every phase of the game.”"

While SI.com correctly recognizes that DeRozan had a breakout season in 2013-14, they could be interpreted as saying that he won’t take another step forward this season.

However, it’s tough to complain about the motivation that this has apparently provided to DeMar.

After ranking ninth in the NBA in points-per-game average in 2013-14 with 22.7, being chosen as an All-Star reserve, and representing the United States at the FIBA World Cup, DeRozan’s confidence might be at an all-time high.

I would also expect the 25-year-old to be hungry for more now that he has had a taste of the playoffs.

What isn’t clear is whether DeRozan also feels disrespected by the rankings bestowed upon his fellow teammates.

If that is the case, and if JV, Amir, and Lowry feel the same way about the entire ordeal, then we could be dealing with an extremely motivated Raptors’ squad this season.

Furthermore, if they aren’t already inspired enough by the challenge of meeting the lofty expectations for 2014-15, then maybe this will put the Raptors over the top.

At the very least, it’s not a bad starting point.

Setting aside the ranking, what should be most encouraging to Raptors fans is that DeRozan, even after all he has accomplished, still realizes that he has something to prove.

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