The Chicago Bulls progressed to the final stage of the NBA Play-In tournament, but they may have DeMar DeRozan’s daughter to thank for her role in it.
Returning to face Toronto Raptors at Scotiabank Arena, where he spent nine years of his career, the 32-year-old was determined to help his side clinch an opportunity to keep their season alive.
They did just that with DeRozan scoring 23 points to go with three assists and seven rebounds in a 109-105 victory over the Raptors. However, his nine-year-old daughter Diar emerged as one of the biggest talking points from the game.
Every time a Raptors player stepped up to the free throw line, the youngster let out a piercing shriek which echoed throughout the arena. It seemed to have the desired effect as the Raptors shot just 18-for-36 (50%) at the line - their worst free throw shooting performance of the season and the most misses in an elimination game since 1969.
It didn't take long for fans to take to Twitter, reacting to what has already been dubbed as ‘perhaps the best free throw defence in history.’ “I kept saying who the heck is screaming?! This is amazing,” one person said, while another chuckled: “That’s why they’ve missed 13 Ft and made 12 after 3 quarters.”
The comments continued as another follower wrote: “And the sixth 'man' for the Chicago Bulls is, Diar DeRozan!!”, while another posted: “Raptors went 18-36, so it totally worked.”
Post-match DeRozan reacted to the incident and was surprised when he realised who the screams were coming from. "I kept hearing something during the game during free throws," he said. "I looked back like dang, that's my daughter screaming."
The six-time NBA All Star revealed his eldest child asked if she could skip a day of school to attend the game after recalling her memories of growing up and going to games in Toronto. "My daughter called me the other day when she was getting out of school and she just said, 'Dad, can I come to the Toronto game?'" DeRozan said.
"I remember her going to all the Toronto games when she was a kid and I almost said no because she's in school back home. But she kept asking. She was just adamant about coming to support and I said, 'All right, you can miss one day of school and come to a game.' I'm glad I did. I owe her some money for sure."
When asked if she will be attending the Bulls’ clash with the Miami Heat for the eighth seed in the Play-Offs, DeRozan clearly stated: “No. She's got to go back to school."
Zach Levine finished the game with 39 points, 30 of which came in the second half, along with seven rebounds and three assists. His points tally tied for the second most by any player in a Play-In game, trailing only Jayson Tatum's 50-point game against the Wizards in 2021.
"We started figuring out how they were playing us,” Lavine said when discussing how they were able to complete the comeback. “They were so far up the court and they started doubling [DeMar DeRozan] with pick-and-rolls. ... For me, in the third quarter, just throw it all out there."
Bulls coach Billy Donavan added: "What he did going into the third quarter and into the fourth, it would have been very, very difficult for us to have won that game if he had not done that. His performance was extraordinary. It gave us life and it gave us hope.
"Then once we got back into it, I think a lot of guys made a lot of different plays. But I give him credit, he had that mentality that he's going to do whatever he can do to get us back into the game." A spot in the first round of the Play-Offs against the Milwaukee Bucks awaits the Bulls or the Miami Heat at the FTX Arena this weekend.
