Stay Revere/Getty Images DeMar DeRozan
Chicago Bulls All-Star DeMar DeRozan is in the midst of the best season of his career. His play this season has put him in the MVP discussion and earned him his fifth selection to the All-Star game.
DeRozan recently made history when he set an NBA record by scoring at least 35 points and shooting at least 50% from the field in eight straight games. He also came just one game shy of tying Michael Jordan’s Bulls record of 11 straight games with 30 points or more.
Sneaker Collection
Throughout his career DeRozan has been regarded as a sneakerhead, wearing some of the best and rarest shoes out there. Because of that he recently appeared on Complex’s show Sneaker Shopping. During the interview, DeRozan discussed his earliest sneaker memory, a pair of fake Jordans.
“It was the 13’s and I remember they were so fake Jordan was spelled with an E,” said DeRozan, “but I wore them like they were real. I’ll never forget them that was my first pair of Jordan’s was fake Jordan’s they were blue and white 13’s and the Jordan was spelled with an E.”
DeRozan also discussed one of his in-game superstitions when it comes to his shoes.
“It’s been a while, but knock on wood hopefully it stays that way, but yeah my superstition is if I have a bad shooting half I’ll switch shoes at halftime and that’s just been my superstition since I came in the league.”
The interview was done right after the recent eight-game historic streak of at least 35 points and shooting at least 50% from the field, so it’s possible he’s gone back to the superstition during the current five-game losing streak. DeRozan is also well known for his collection of Kobe Bryant sneakers, he started wearing them in high school and has an interesting story of how he started wearing them.
“My first pair came from of Kobe’s was actually from Kobe…it was the Kobe ones…he gave them to me…That was just the relationship I had with him, I think it started when I was 15, 16 and by the time I think the Kobe ones came out… my senior year of high school it was ’07 or ’08 he gave me the first pair and it started from there.”
“When I went to college by the time, by that time my relationship I had with him, he sponsored us and we had our own special made SC Kobe’s. So that was just the relationship that we had that just carried over until I was in the league and I think that’s why I just held down the brand so long.”
After hearing that story it’s definitely understandable why DeRozan is such a fan of wearing them. The interview also alludes to a Brian Windhorst story about how rare Kobe’s are now unless you’re DeRozan who has a lot.
DeRozan’s Recent Struggles
While DeRozan has had a terrific season so far, the Bulls are in the middle of a season-long losing streak of five games in a row. During the losing streak, his play has come back down to earth.
DeRozan was on fire going into the All-Star break, but during this losing streak, he’s averaging just 24.6 points per game, while shooting just 39.3% from the field. With all that he’s been carrying this season, it’s possible that DeRozan is worn down.
With the injuries the Bulls have sustained this season, DeRozan has been carrying a lot of the load. If the team is going to make a serious push this postseason they’ll need DeRozan to be at his best.