CHICAGO — For one night, the band was finally all together.
Lonzo Ball walked through that door and was back in the starting lineup. Zach LaVine and Patrick Williams were on the court instead of wearing bulky, protective boots and street clothes. Nikola Vučević sprayed in shots.
And DeMar DeRozan, the “King of the Fourth,” closed it out.
Oh, what could have been for the Chicago Bulls.
Instead, DeRozan could only imagine the possibilities during the Sacramento Kings’ 124-119 road victory over the Bulls on Sunday, his first visit to Chicago since the Bulls traded him last summer.
“For sure, without a doubt,” DeRozan said. “It definitely gives you that thought, because that’s why we came here, to play together, to have those type of moments. It didn’t go as we expected it to go, but the friendships and the moments that were created during that time means the world to me.”
DeRozan, 35, spent the past three seasons with the Bulls, earning All-Star selections in his first two seasons while captaining Chicago to the 2022 postseason. It remains the Bulls’ lone playoff berth over the past seven seasons.
DeRozan appeared in 229 of a possible 246 regular-season games over his three seasons with the Bulls. He dazzled home and road crowds, hitting buzzer-beating shots and earning a reputation as a clutch performer because of his ability to take over games late. He averaged 25.5 points, 4.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.1 steals in 36.7 minutes per game in Chicago.
Forever The King of the Fourth 👑
Chicago will always love @DeMar_DeRozan ❤️ pic.twitter.com/x6vkobWz0E
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) July 8, 2024
In a Sunday contest that saw 28 lead changes, 13 ties and neither team lead by more than eight points, DeRozan delivered late for his team again. He scored nine of his 21 points in the fourth quarter, playing all but 14 seconds of the final period.
After each of his final three buckets, he turned to the Bulls’ bench and shot a glare and, perhaps, a slick word. His stares and smack weren’t directed at anybody in particular. He was talking to everybody.
“All of them, every single one of them,” DeRozan said. “Whoever I played with last year, they all got it.”
“I like him more on our side, in our uniform,” said Ball, who made his first start since Jan. 14, 2022, after multiple knee surgeries. “But he still looks pretty good in the black and purple.”
Welcome back to the United Center, Deebo ❤️ pic.twitter.com/aTTJJfQN81
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 12, 2025
The Bulls honored DeRozan with a video tribute during a first-quarter timeout Sunday to recognize the impact he made during his brief tenure. Fans cheered for DeRozan when he was introduced as a Kings starter and again following the video.
“The first moment I came here, I tried to give my all to this organization, to this city. And I think it showed,” DeRozan said. “You can’t fake it when you’re genuinely putting everything into representing the Bulls. I embodied the culture of Chicago, everything. I think when people see that, you get the genuine reaction in return.”
DeRozan ranked his Chicago days ahead of his three-year stint with the San Antonio Spurs but behind his first home, the place he endured so many battles over nine seasons.
“Toronto will always be No. 1, first of all,” DeRozan said, smiling. “But, I’ve got to put Chicago second because, mentally, of the space I was in after I got traded (to San Antonio). San Antonio helped my career so much. But, where I was with my joy mentally, I was going through so much stuff personally.
“So, to kind of have a renewed ambition coming to Chicago … I remember the first meeting I had with (executive vice president of basketball operations Artūras Karnišovas) and (general manager) Marc (Eversley). They said, ‘Come here and just be you.’ For that to translate to me being an All-Star, to doing all the incredible things I did here, it just shows you that if you stay with something, it will repay you. It gave me a renewed ambition coming back here.”
DeMar DeRozan on facing the Bulls for the first time since his trade to Sacramento:
“It was cool, man, just to be able to have the opportunity and come back to a place where they love you, appreciate you. My three years here felt like 10. I enjoyed my time here.” pic.twitter.com/hNcdmrJItp
— Darnell Mayberry (@DarnellMayberry) January 12, 2025
Ask those who worked with DeRozan in Chicago, and they’ll say he gave as much as he received from a franchise and fan base that adored him then and still does today.
“We’ll still talk about certain stories that happened with him,” Vučević said. “A guy like that always leaves a big impact, more so for the kind of guy he is, how he carries himself. You always respect people like that. It was great for everyone to have him here for all these years, but especially for the young guys, they were able to learn a lot from him about the game, how to carry yourself on and off the court, what to do and how to prepare, the mental aspect, a lot of things that we can all learn from him and carry on throughout the rest of our careers.”
Kings interim coach Doug Christie immediately spotted the same determination Bulls fans witnessed from DeRozan’s summer workouts with young players like Williams and Dalen Terry.
“To watch his preparation and how he goes about his business was super high-level,” Christie said. “I was so impressed.”
Christie and the Kings now enjoy the unshakable poise that DeRozan once supplied the Bulls. It’s the biggest thing Christie said DeRozan has added in Sacramento.
“A calm confidence. Like, ‘We’re good,’” Christie said. “From being in that locker room that way as a player, those were things that when you feel them, it makes you feel some sort of way about who we are and what we’re about to do. He gives us that in a lot of moments. That’s why many times when you see the ball in his hands, it’s not necessarily always to get busy. It’s more for him to make the decision.”
DeRozan was crucial in lifting that pressure from a rookie Ayo Dosunmu and a third-year Coby White, both of whom the Bulls relied upon more in the aftermath of Ball’s knee injury during the 2021-22 season. DeRozan didn’t just provide on-court guidance; he made it a point to teach them lessons on manhood and professionalism along the way.
DeMar DeRozan hugs former Bulls teammates Jevon Carter (left) and Torrey Craig after Sunday’s game at United Center. (Matt Marton / Imagn Images)
“Every time I chilled or did anything with those guys, it was genuine,” DeRozan said. “I didn’t even care about basketball. I just wanted them to be great individuals first and foremost and understand that you play in this league so much that you’re going to have a lot of ups and downs emotionally and mentally. You’ve got to find an even keel to be able to sustain so much.
“Those guys became, like I always said, they were my sons. They’re still my sons (laughs). But to see them grow and mature, even me talking to them now, it means the world to me because the respect will forever be there.”
DeRozan then exited his postgame interview and bumped into the bushy-haired, always-jovial White, who did not play Sunday because of a neck strain. The bond they built over DeRozan’s three seasons in Chicago became apparent the moment White stopped and beamed.
“You said you would be quick,” White said, laughing. “You still gotta ice your knees.”
(Top photo: Matt Marton / Imagn Images)
