It was a landmark day for Chicago Bulls star DeMar DeRozan as he notched up 20,000 points in his career. The forward has been a central force for the Bulls this season, and the achievement comes amid what promises to be a good season for the side and DeRozan.
With this, DeRozan is placed 54th on the NBA/ABA’s all-time scorers list and joins an elite club of players, including LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Russell Westbrook, and Stephen Curry to name a few.
The milestone came against his former team, San Antonio. Per a Yahoo report, the 33-year-old had spoken about doing it against the Spurs but was also grateful for all the time he spent with San Antonio.
“I wanted to save it for Pop. Going back to a place that I spent some time, learned so much from, a place that embraced me, wasn’t nothing but love. And it was definitely a learning curve for me in my career at a critical time in my career — and Pop really helped me a lot in my career. I think it’ll be cool to be able to do it there.”
There’s no doubt that the feat is proof of DeRozan’s commitment and consistency — the bedrock of his success in the NBA.
Gregg Popovich Calls Timeout To Celebrate DeMar DeRozan’s Achievement
It was truly all love between the Spurs coach Gregg Popovich and DeMar DeRozan as the former called timeout to celebrate the landmark. In addition, he also shared a heartwarming moment hugging the player.
Speaking about the achievement, coach Pop, as he’s fondly known, only had good words for the former Spur. Per Yahoo:
Pop called a timeout to celebrate DeMar reaching 20k points
Respect 🤝 https://t.co/CLMLc0OED7
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 29, 2022
“(DeRozan is) a beautiful, wonderful human being. One of the best that I’ve ever coached. I still stay in touch with him. He’s just a sweet man.”
DeRozan will hope that his milestone will translate to something bigger and better as the Bulls stake a claim for the playoffs and beyond. They made the first round of the playoffs last year but lost 4-1 to the Milwaukee Bucks. Chicago plays the Philadelphia 76ers next at the United Center.
