A trailblazer for mental health, DeMar DeRozan has never shied away from opening up about his struggles with the same. Realizing the need to address these issues without having to face the stigma, particularly among athletes, the latest Kings addition started the YouTube series, Dinners with DeMar. Needless to say, it was a huge success. And he is back with Season 2!

DeRozan’s first guest for the second season was another mental health advocate, Chris Paul. Fitting. And he wasted no time sharing the sneak peek of the series on X. But it wasn’t just CP3 who was a prominent figure in the video. ESPN analyst, Malika Andrews, was also at hand to no doubt, speak on the topic.

In the video, Deebo thanked the duo for accepting his invitation. “Dropping season 2 of my “Dinners With DeMar” interview series soon. Thank you to @malika_andrews and @CP3 for opening up and helping me break the stigma around mental health,” he captioned, followed by a salute emoji.

And Paul’s reply was a simple, “My dawg!!!” tagging DeRozan, his excitement clear in the number of exclamation marks. But if that isn’t enough for you, here’s what DeMar DeRozan himself said about the reception of the interview series by those both in the sport and outside.

“Reaction’s been great! You know, even players and certain guys I am close to, coming up to me, wanting to be on the show, wanting to be able to narrate their story,” the 6x All-Star explained in the video.

It isn’t surprising that people would be interested in DeMar’s show. For one, he has normalized the existence of mental health problems. Secondly, he made sure those on his show and the ones watching, feel they are in a safe space. After all, he went through it all and then some.

DeMar DeRozan admitted he was “lying to himself” as he dealt with depression

Recently, the 35-year-old published his autobiography, Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm. In the memoir, DeMar details his childhood, growing up in the gang-ridden neighborhood of Compton, as well as his father’s passing in 2021. But a few days after the release, the ex-Bulls forward took to X, posting a series of tweets.

“My heart’s so big my scars won’t heal. I get so sick and tired even trying to fix it.” “I was dying inside, dealing with depression, really lying to myself…,” were some of them.

DeRozan’s advocacy for mental health issues became prominent since 2018. From then, he’s been very transparent with his struggles. Despite the fame, success, money, there was the dark side, too. And it often pushed athletes down the rabbit hole, staying quiet until it was no longer possible. But by then, they would have gone too far.

However, with DeRozan putting himself out there as an outspoken global ambassador for mental health, it has helped more and more fellow peers to open up, as well. And that was also what he wanted to achieve with his series. “What I want people to know is that players are human just like everyone else. We have emotions. We break down.”