This past offseason, the San Antonio Spurs traded Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green to the Toronto Raptors for DeMar DeRozan and big man Jakob Poetl.

The general consensus is that the Spurs lost this trade, and that is evident with their current record. San Antonio is only 17-15 and have barely scratched the eighth seed in the NBA’s extremely deep Western Conference. Meanwhile, the Raptors are top of the East and the NBA with a 24-9 record.

Despite the Spurs’ struggles, however, DeMar DeRozan is fully committed to coach Gregg Popovich and the team’s future. And he won’t let a mediocre season bring him down.

Trusting the Process is a saying made famous by former Philadelphia 76ers general manager Sam Hinkie. The fans of the 76ers in the time embraced the idea of tanking, losing out on purpose for multiple years in order to stockpile future assets and draft picks.

For the Spurs this season, they aren’t necessarily trying to purposely lose. Coach Popovich would never go for such a thing. However, fans and front office alike know this a rebuilding season. At the very least, the Spurs will retool this summer to build a winning team around DeRozan and Lamarcus Aldridge.

DeRozan is averaging 23.3 points, 5.6 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game while shooting 47.8 percent from the field.

The Spurs will next play the Minnesota Timberwolves this Friday at home.