Demar DeRozan joined JJ Redick on his podcast, The Old Man and the Three, to talk about a wide variety of subjects, including Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. Redick’s co-host Tommy Alter started the discussion by asking DeRozan what he learned about playing against playoff Giannis. Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks knocked Demar DeRozan and the Chicago Bulls out of the first round of last year’s playoffs in the first round.
Demar DeRozan saw a different version of Giannis Antetokounmpo than he knew in his first stint in the Eastern Conference.
DeRozan spoke on Giannis’ development from the last time DeRozan played in the Eastern Conference to where Giannis is now. Demar DeRozan spent the first nine seasons of his NBA career with the Toronto Raptors, a team that knocked Giannis and the Bucks out of the Eastern Conference playoffs in 2017 following the 2016-17 season, the 2017 playoffs marked a turning point for Giannis. For the 2016-17 season, Giannis was recognized as the NBA’s Most Improved Player, an award that would serve as a springboard for what Giannis has done in the three years DeRozan spent in the Western Conference as a member of the San Antonio Spurs.
DeRozan was the centerpiece of a trade that sent Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors, from 2018 through 2021 Demar DeRozan and Giannis Antetokounmpo only saw each other twice a year and never in the playoffs (they would have had to meet in the NBA Finals). Last season, Demar DeRozan signed a free agent deal with the Chicago Bulls and now faces Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks four times per year and faced off in the opening round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
What did Giannis Antetokounmpo do while DeRozan was in the west?
In that three year period that DeRozan was in the West, Giannis Antetokounmpo racked up two MVP Awards, a Defensive Player of the Year Award, a championship, a Finals MVP and three unanimous First Team All-NBA selections. DeRozan was traded out of the East while Giannis was just starting to grow, when he returned, Giannis had basically assembled a Hall of Fame career in three years. Not to mention the crazy physical developments Giannis has displayed.
DeRozan described the development Giannis has made in the last three years as “incredible” and “remarkable” and credited the amount of effort that Giannis has put in to want to be great. DeRozan also credited Giannis’ dedication to improvement and remembered back to when Giannis Antetokounmpo first came into the league.
DeRozan talked about how it was easier to push around the much skinnier Giannis, before he became the Greek God of basketball he is today. JJ Redick chimed in a fair point that at that time in his career, Giannis wasn’t a great basketball player. These things are really a testament to how far Giannis has come and just the sheer magnitude of how much he has improved since being drafted in 2013.
Both DeRozan and Redick acknowledged that they knew something was there.
Demar DeRozan talking about Giannis Antetokounmpo today:
After remarking on how dedicated Giannis Antetokounmpo has been towards his development to this point, DeRozan said “even to this day you can see how bad he wants it, you can see it physically, his demeanor.”
"When you go out there on the court, he’s a f**king killer. Every time."
Demar DeRozan acknowledged that when Giannis Antetokounmpo flips that switch, he is all business and his drive and dedication to want to be great make him a killer on the court. DeRozan finished his description by saying that competing against him, the Bucks and Bulls faced each other a grand total of nine times during DeRozan’s first year with the Bulls, why Giannis is an MVP and why he is regarded as one of the most dominant players in the league. An ESPN survey of scouts, executives and coaches done this off-season named Giannis Antetokounmpo the best player in the NBA today.
JJ Redick then mentioned that Giannis Antetokounmpo was the hardest player he has ever seen in the All-Star weekend Skills Competition. Redick and DeRozan together mused about Giannis not having an off switch in his body when it comes to basketball. Another player that had that mindset has an entire mentality named around him, the Mamba Mentality, the late Kobe Bryant, whom Giannis saw as a mentor after his retirement. Back in 2017, Giannis asked Kobe for a challenge, Kobe replied: “MVP”.
You can find the entire conversation from the Old Man and the Three podcast about Giannis here.
In a world filled with comments like the ones Charles Oakley and Gilbert Arenas have made in the last year, it is very refreshing to see a player, especially one as high caliber as Demar DeRozan, give credit and respect to Giannis, who is very deserving of it. In a world where several analysts and former players are in a race to make the hottest take for the sake of having people click on their stuff, respect is earned and when it is earned, seeing it shared is heartwarming. Credit to Demar DeRozan for sharing that respect for a player on a rival team.
Giannis has certainly built an impressive career for himself in the last four years, however he is only 27 years old and has a lot of time to continue building his resume and collecting more milestones in his career.
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