DeMar DeRozan is indeed heading to his native California, but not to his hometown of Los Angeles.
According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Sacramento Kings have agreed to a three-year, $73.7 million sign-and-trade deal with DeRozan, sending Harrison Barnes to the San Antonio Spurs and Chris Duarte, two second-round picks and cash to the Chicago Bulls. Wojnarowski reports that DeRozan is in the third year of the deal. $10 million partially guaranteed.
DeRozan himself offered some confirmation shortly thereafter, showing up at Sacramento’s Golden 1 Center to the sound of Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us,” a song DeRozan is named in and appears in the recent music video.
DeRozan, who turns 35 in August, averaged 24 points (on 48-33-85 shooting), 5.3 assists and 4.4 rebounds in a league-leading 37.8 minutes per game for the Bulls last season.
This combination of scoring and playmaking would make him an intriguing fit in the Kings lineup alongside De’Aaron Fox. He reportedly played a key role in attracting DeRozan.and Domantas Sabonis. The Kings haven’t lacked for firepower offensively since becoming a playoff team two seasons ago, but they’ll likely be hoping another All-Star like DeRozan can help push the team’s limits in a competitive Western Conference.
DeMar DeRozan joins fourth NBA team
DeRozan is a pro scorer, having finished in the top three in Clutch Player of the Year voting the past two consecutive seasons. His mid-range game is lethal. His playmaking has been a strength throughout his career, with his 1.7 turnovers per game last season being his fewest since his rookie year. He has shot under 30% from three-point range throughout his career, but has been shooting more willingly (and successfully) in recent seasons.
DeRozan signed a three-year, $81.9 million contract with the Bulls in 2021. He appeared in one playoff series in three seasons with Chicago, losing in five games to the Milwaukee Bucks in 2022. The Bulls have made it to the play-in tournament each of the past two seasons but missed the playoffs both times.
DeRozan made five straight playoff appearances with the Toronto Raptors in the 2010s and reached the Eastern Conference finals in 2016, and has appeared in 12 playoff games in two series over the past six seasons, except for one appearance in three seasons with the San Antonio Spurs.
The Raptors traded DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a 2019 first-round pick (Keldon Johnson) to the Spurs in 2018 for Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green. Leonard led Toronto to its first championship in 2019, and since then DeRozan has been searching for a presence on a championship-contender team. Here’s hoping he finds it.
As for Barnes, the move marks the departure of one of the Kings’ longest-tenured players. The former No. 7 overall pick with the Golden State Warriors and championship-winning player has been a veteran presence on the perimeter of the Kings’ young core since 2019. Now he’s moving to the Spurs to help build something different around Victor Wembanyama.
