The Toronto Raptors are coming off yet another disappointing finish to a strong regular season that saw them bow out of the playoffs for the second straight time in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

This has led to a coaching change with head coach Dwane Casey out of the mix to Nick Nurse being put in that spot as the replacement. During a recent interview with SiriusXM NBA Radio, Nurse made it clear that he plans to challenge All-Star guard DeMar DeRozan more defensively in the regular season.

“I'm more concerned on DeMar, and I've already talked to him about this, is that he becomes a little more focused, defensively. Some of the experimentation we were talking about. Maybe instead of hiding him a regular season game on a poor offensive player in December. Maybe we are going to throw him on an All-Star. Maybe it costs a little bit, but maybe he learns a thing or two that'll help him down the line. We need to challenge him on that end of the floor. We need to hold him a little more accountable. We're going to do that, and he's onboard with that.”

Throughout his NBA career, DeRozan has developed into one of the league's most reliable scorers but that hasn't translated to him garnering that same level of reputation on the defensive side of the floor. Nurse is looking to change that by challenging him next season to become a more well-rounded player.

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There could some struggles ahead, but at the same time, it pushes DeRozan to be more engaged on both ends of the floor while increasing his level of impact on the floor when his shot isn't falling. It's an experimentation that may greatly benefit him to help lift the team to the next level in the Eastern Conference to finally be serious contenders for the NBA title.

Ultimately, only time will tell if this will all work out for the betterment of the team on the court to help them get closer to getting out of the East.