Would DeMar DeRozan start on the…
Boston Celtics
Ray Allen. No.
New Jersey Nets
He’d likely get the nod just ahead of Anthony Morrow despite Morrow being a great shooter. I’d rate Morrow’s defense as worse than DeRozan’s, and he’s a poor athlete and decision-maker. Given that they’re both bad defenders, it comes down to whether you want a pure shooter, or a guy with a more versatile offensive game. DeRozan wins. Yes.
New York Knicks
Second-rounder Landry Fields is the closest thing to competition. I’m thinking the Knicks would move Fields, who is comfortable as a reserve, to come off the bench and give DeRozan the starting job. Other competition is in the form of Roger Mason and Bill Walker. DeRozan wins, so Yes.
Philadelphia 76ers
Evan Turner had a tough year, and I’m guessing that if by chance a DeRozan for Turner trade was proposed to Philly, they’d do it in a heartbeat. Yes.
Chicago Bulls
Keith Bogans at 31 and a 30-year old Kyle Korver aren’t cutting it, and they already tried to get DeRozan at the deadline. Yes.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Joey Graham, Anthony Parker and Alonze Gee. Ouch. The Cavs would probably flip Tristan Thompson for DeRozan. Yes.
Detroit Pistons
Ben Gordon, Richard Hamilton and Tracy McGrady. Average age of 31. Ben Gordon might’ve been a name a couple years ago after the Boston-Chicago series, but his “star” has faded big time. Yes.
Indiana Pacers
Dahntay Jones and Brandon Rush. DeRozan is better than both. Yes.
Milwaukee Bucks
Stephen Jackson and Michael Redd. Redd is fat now, so forget about him. Jackson is a team leader of sorts, and I’d think Scott Skiles likes to put experience in the lineup. No.
Atlanta Hawks
Joe Johnson. No.
Charlotte Bobcats
Matt Carroll, Gerald Henderson. Yes.
Miami Heat
Dwayne Wade. No.
Orlando Magic
Jason Richardson. Hmm. Richardson is a great three-point shooter, is unbelievably athletic, can finish at the rim, has a good post-up game against smaller guards, and is a half-decent defender. I’d say DeRozan’s overall game has some ways to go before he gets to Richardson’s level and consistency. No.
Washington Wizards
Jordan Crawford and Nick Young. Sometimes we tend to have inflated opinions of certain players when comparing them to archetypes. Sure, DeRozan has his merits against these two, notably getting to the FT line, but two years in, I haven’t seen much from DeRozan that I wouldn’t see from from these two if given the same amount of playing time and opportunity. After all, if scoring is what you’re judging a guy on, Nick Young did drop 17.4 ppg last year. This might sound harsh, but No.
Golden State Warriors
Monta Ellis. Ellis is one of the most explosive scorers in the legaue and is coming off an excellent season where he played 80 games, putting the questions about injury issues to rest. No.
Los Angeles Clippers
Eric Gordon. A tweener who can really score using his strength in the lane, a sweet stroke from outside, and by getting to the line. He’s only 22 and has shown enough to warrant being part of a nucleus on a rebuilding team. DeRozan has shown flashes, but not nearly enough to trump Gordon. No.
Los Angeles Lakers
Kobe. No.
Phoenix Suns
Vince Carter, Josh Childress. Carter is done, and Childress is a bench player whose ceiling was clear two years ago. Suns are/should be in a rebuild so DeRozan gets the job. Yes.
Sacramento Kings
Tyreke Evans. Close call, but DeRozan loses out. Both play high minutes on bad teams, DeRozan is more efficient and Evans could be termed a “volume scorer”, it’s the latter’s passing and shot-making prowess that makes him more worthy of minutes. No.
Dallas Mavericks
If Jason Terry was a starter, this would be a no. But since he’s not, DeRozan is up against Rudy Fernandez and Deshawn Stevenson. Unless Fernandez finds his form again, this one is pretty easy in DeRozan’s favor. Yes.
Houston Rockets
Chuck Hayes and Courtney Lee. Courtney Lee was considered a steal by the Magic until this happened. It’s like that was his Nick Anderson moment. Yes. Kevin Martin. No.
Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizz build their playoff run on defense, and DeRozan wouldn’t get past Tony Allen for that reason alone. If he does manage to beat out Allen, there’s O.J. Mayo, who isn’t the second coming of Dwayne Wade like many thought, but still a decent scorer with a great shot. He can’t blow by you, but neither can DeRozan. It would be close and I’d give the edge to DeRozan, except that the small matter of Allen remains unsolved. No.
New Orleans Hornets
DeRozan was ahead of Marco Belinelli in Toronto, and would be again in New Orleans. Yes.
San Antonio Spurs
If it’s against Manu Ginobili, no, but like Jason Terry he doesn’t start. So the matchup is against James Anderson, and maybe Gary Neal if you count him as an off-guard. Yes.
Denver Nuggets
Arron Afflalo is doing just fine in Denver. They like how he spreads the floor and plays defense, if DeRozan somehow ended up in Denver, he’s have to fight for a starting job that, by default, would belong to Afflalo. Oh yeah, there’s also J.R Smith. No.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Yes.
OKC Thunder
Thabo Sefolosha isn’t the scorer DeRozan is, but it doesn’t matter because like Memphis, this position is all about defense. Given how James Harden’s got the bench role all sewn up, DeRozan would have trouble cracking the lineup, let alone starting. No.
Portland Trailblazers
Against a healthy Brandon Roy, no. Against a one-legged Brandon Roy and Wesley Matthews? Let’s see, if you looking at the stats alone, they’re fairly even, DeRozan gets to the line more, but Matthews is a much better three-point shooter. Matthews is playing a James Posey role in Portland which is hardly glamorous, DeRozan is playing the star player role in Toronto, and is treated as such by the fans and media. I’ll place a bet and say that if Matthews was in Toronto, he’s be looked upon as a core piece moving forward, just like DeRozan. No.
Utah Jazz
Raja Bell is only a starter on a contender playing a defensive role. C.J Miles is more of a small forward, and even if he was a shooting guard, I’d say DeRozan would easily beat him out. Yes.
So there you go, DeRozan starts on 15 of 29 other NBA teams.
