It’s official. DeMar DeRozan is a free agent. The Sacramento Kings waived him and the remainder of his contract, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Shams tweeted that “DeRozan had a partial guarantee on his contract for next season, but he and Sacramento worked on his release Monday to allow him to find a new home. Multiple contenders are expected to have interest in the veteran guard.”
It’s a win-win move for both parties, DeRozan gets to pick his next spot, and Sacramento gets a bit of cap flexibility after Zach LaVine’s $49 million player option kicks in.
DeRozan averaged 18.4 points, 4.1 assists and 2.9 rebounds last season over 77 games. He signed in Sacramento in 2024, but it never really turned into a real contender situation there. Now he’s back on the market, and for Raptors fans, it’s hard not to notice the timing.
Kawhi Leonard is already back in Toronto. Kyle Lowry is set to retire a Raptor. And now DeRozan is suddenly available too. That’s a lot of familiar names all at once.
DeRozan’s story in Toronto goes way back. Drafted ninth overall in 2009, he spent years growing into one of the faces of the franchise alongside Lowry. He helped turn the Raptors into a consistent East contender and was right at the center of that 59-win season in 2017–18.
Of course we all the trade that came in 2018, the one that sent him to the San Antonio Spurs and brought Kawhi Leonard to the 6ix. That move obviously changed everything for the franchise. Now years later, it’s kind of wild how things are lining up again. Kawhi’s back. Lowry’s coming home to retire. And DeRozan is out there again.
Feels like the past and present are colliding a bit. Could DeMar actually be coming home?
