Toronto Raptors: 2017-18 player grades for DeMar DeRozan

Final grade

Some people thought the Raptors’ brand new offense would finally put them over the hump in the Eastern Conference. With the Cavs’ roster reduced to LeBron James and a collection of burlap sacks, plus the Boston Celtics missing two All-Stars, things looked like they were finally in place for Toronto. Instead, well…

In that sense, DeRozan perfectly reflects this team. Many fans and sportswriters thought this was a different DeRozan that took a step toward superstardom. That, uh, wasn’t the case.

Toronto’s net rating went from +7.2 to +9.9 when DeRozan went to the bench. It was worse in the playoffs; the Raptors had a -8.8 net rating when DeRozan played. It jumped to +9.3 when he sat.

It got so bad that Dwane Casey sat him during the late stages of the fourth quarter in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. DeRozan, the second-best player on this team, watched helplessly as LeBron once again Kali Ma’d Toronto.

DeRozan is a very good NBA player. He could be the third-best option on a championship team. I’m sure LeBron would love to have a guy like him in the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. But all the changes to his game didn’t change the fact that he falls somewhere short of superstar status. For better or worse, DeRozan is what he is: a shoot-first wing that came up in the wrong era.

Next: The 50 greatest NBA players of all time (updated, 2016-17)

Grade: B+