To explain DeMar DeRozan’s anger towards ESPN’s John Hollinger, we’ll have to go back to what happened earlier on Wednesday.
Toronto Sun writer Ryan Wolstat said Raptors head coach Dwane Casey was insulted by ESPN’s prediction of his team going 33-49 for the upcoming season. Here is exactly what Casey had to say on the matter:
“I saw today someone predict we’re going to win 33 games, so, with that lack of respect, that should get us motivated to come in this gym each and every day to bust our tails … I’m just telling you guys that, Hollinger report or whatever it was. That right there tells us how much lack of respect the league has for us and how much we’ve got to continue to work each and every day we walk on the floor.”
Apparently, some were simply more insulted than motivated. It’s one thing to have a desire to prove the critics wrong – that’s always a good thing.
It’s another thing, however, to call them names because you don’t like where they ranked your team – someone has to be at the bottom, after all.
The Raptors were 23-43 last season and 22-60 in the 2010-2011 season. The team last made the playoffs in the 2007-2008 season, two seasons before DeRozan was even in the league.
With the addition of critical pieces to the team like Kyle Lowry, Landry Fields and Jonas Valanciunas in the offseason, better times may be ahead for Toronto. Still, they have yet to prove anything. Once they If they actually make some noise in the upcoming season, perhaps then, DeRozan will have more of a reason to call someone a clown for doubting his team.
On a complete side note, be sure to check out Kevin Love’s Tweet of the Day. Retweeting this particular tweet from Love will help him donate to Breast Cancer charity. Good man, indeed.
33 games seems like an awful lot for this bunch
When he proves to be wrong by overestimating them, I will have a good laugh.
To be fair, Hollinger’s major contribution to basketball analysis is an equation that tells us that players named Jordan, Russell, O’Neal, Chamberlain, Bryant, Johnson and Bird win a lot of games.
Yeah that sums it up (eyes roll).