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One of the biggest moves of the offseason came when DeMar DeRozan officially decided to part ways with the Chicago Bulls. In doing so, the six-time All-Star joined the Sacramento Kings by way of a sign-and-trade that sent Chris Duarte and two second-round picks to the Bulls. The San Antonio Spurs were the third team involved in this agreement, as they acquired Harrison Barnes from Sacramento.
DeRozan spent a total of three seasons with the Bulls, only taking them to the playoffs once in 2022. Although his time in Chicago was shorter than anticipated, DeRozan was truly embraced by Bulls fans as the face of the franchise. As a result, the veteran took to social media on Tuesday to say goodbye to the organization he has spent the last few years of his life with.
However, DeRozan made it clear in his message to the Bulls that the “nightmares” are on their way when Sacramento and Chicago square off during the 2024-25 season.
“And I say Chi City! A Thank you would be an understatement. The love, passion & joy you filled me with for 3 seasons was a dream. It gave me a drive every night to return the feeling,” DeRozan wrote on Instagram. “To the entire organization, front office, coaching staff and to everyone who worked in the United Center, I couldn’t ask for better people. To my teammates, we created a bond that’ll last forever- memories I’ll never forget.
“I know the nightmares started already knowing you will face me in another jersey, but it’ll only be twice! Love & Appreciation for everything, Chicago!”
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In his time with the Bulls, DeRozan played in a total of 229 regular-season games, missing just 17 contests over the last three seasons. As the leader of the Bulls, DeRozan averaged 25.5 points, 5.1 assists, and 4.7 rebounds per game while shooting 49.6 percent from the floor. He even led the league in clutch time scoring this past season at 4.6 points per game in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter and overtime. DeRozan scored a total of 182 clutch-time points, trailing only Stephen Curry at 189 points.
Now that he is set to join the Kings, DeRozan will pair up with De'Aaron Fox, who earned the 2022-23 Clutch Player of the Year award. This duo will be awfully tough for teams to stop late in games due to their clutch nature of play.
The good news for the Bulls is that they won't have to worry about facing DeRozan and the Kings many times. Still, these two teams will meet twice during the 2024-25 season, setting up a time for DeRozan to make the Bulls' “nightmares” of having to face him come true.
