For the first time in roughly a decade, there is an MVP candidate worth talking about in the latter stretches of a season for the Chicago Bulls thanks to five-time All-Star forward DeMar DeRozan. After putting together one of the more impressive runs of late, and getting the nod as an All-Star starter this year, DeRozan is starting to enter the MVP conversation of late.
Despite having a tough outing, including an ejection in the final minute, for DeRozan in a six-point Bulls loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Feb. 26, the veteran star forward is having a tremendous run this season for this team. And while DeRozan might not have the most impressive advanced metrics of all the MVP contenders this season, his impact on success in the win column for the Bulls is untold.
You are starting to see that more and more people among basketball fans and the voices in the media are getting behind the idea of DeRozan as the MVP this season. There is also one key star player for the Golden State Warriors that is high on DeRozan’s chances to win MVP.
According to a report from Cydney Henderson of USA Today on Feb. 28, the Warriors four-time All-Star forward and 2016-17 Defensive Player of the Year Draymond Green feels that DeRozan is deserving of getting the MVP honors this season.
Draymond Green reportedly thinks Chicago Bulls’ star DeMar DeRozan is the MVP this season
Green mentioned that he feels that DeRozan was often “disrespected” and flew too far under the radar in terms of the NBA superstar and MVP conversation in the early parts of this season and in years past. There is some truth to that school of thought from Green.
DeRozan looked like one of the best players in the league since the early stages of the regular season. That is not something that has changed in the last couple of months. The only difference is that DeRozan started to get more league-wide attention during All-Star Weekend as to what he’s done for the Bulls in the first half of the season.
So far this season, DeRozan has averaged around 28 points per game, five rebounds, and five assists while shooting 52 percent from the field and 35 percent from beyond the arc. He’s looking to lead a 39-22 Bulls team to a win to round out the February slate as they take on the first-place Miami Heat on the road on Feb. 28.