Over the last few decades, the NBA has witnessed a lot of change. Apart from the monetary value and viewing experience, the game on the court has transitioned significantly. Most notably, over the last decade, mid-range shots have diminished. Addressing the issue, DeMar DeRozan made an enraged confession involving the shooting legend, Steph Curry and his evergreen Bay Area legacy. The Kings‘ new hero, extremely worried about modernization, also passed an important philosophy to the younger generation.

After playing in the league for 15 seasons, DeRozan, as someone who owns the art of mid-range buckets, saw its devaluation and disappearance in plain sight. If a player looks for 2 points, they can either dunk, make a lay-up, or shoot near the basket. If they move away and make a mid-range shot and miss it, they may as well move a bit further behind the line and attempt a 3p. That has been the philosophy of the modern NBA. The mid-range attempts have significantly dropped from 30.3% in 2011-12 to 13.1% in 2021-22.

While it may seem like a reasonable shift, DeMar DeRozan isn’t impressed with it at all. On the Club 520 Podcast, the 35-year-old let off some steam. DeRozan said, “I want people to understand this (mid-range) is the art of basketball. This is the art of what the game was built on. Everybody can’t be Steph Curry. And that’s fine. Steph is Steph for a reason. Everybody can’t be Klay.” 

Steph and Klay have undeniably been influential in putting the spotlight on three-pointers over the last decade, building the Warriors dynasty majorly with their abilities to make the play and sink the ball from outrageous angles from beyond the arc. However, it didn’t do good for DeMar DeRozan, as he charged one of his former teams for forcing the change on him.

The former Bulls forward added, “It was a year where they came to me and said you have to shoot more threes… nobody can stop me doing this… I hate it.” Interestingly, his shooting accuracy from deep range saw a massive 9.5% bump up and the vet’s been lurking in the early 30s ever since moving to Chicago. However, despite his clear improvement, he clarified one fundamental for the youngsters.

DeMar DeRozan’s “philosophy” to Anthony Edwards, Victor Wembanyama, Luka Doncic and the next generation of winners

Earlier, basketball meant physicality, grit, domination, and shooting prowess. And now, even the current game has all of them, however, it has one more addition to it, which is the analytics. The machines decide which shot to make based on the data available. The Sac Town hero isn’t a fan of it.

He said, “I hate it when that analytic sh– started coming in the game. It used to make me so mad.” 

However, DeMar DeRozan didn’t stop at that. He continued to pass on his philosophy to the younger generation in the same breath. He added, “Telling these young ones that’s coming up that need to learn a fundamental of the game. It’s inside out, not outside in how the game is played. That’s my philosophy.”

Stepping into his 16th season, DeMar DeRozan has battled between old-school and modern NBA. There’s no doubt that it would’ve been tough on him to transition soon enough, while the league moved on from mid-rangers. However, while everyone focuses on the young guns like Anthony Edwards, the vet has continued to stay on top of the list alongside Kevin Durant, making their middies.

In the last season, DeMar DeRozan stood second with 43.0% from mid-range, sinking 235 buckets! Meanwhile, the Slim Reaper, who came second in the last few seasons, overtook the ex-Bulls forward and recorded 51.8%.

Observations? Drop ’em blow.

Before leaving, do watch the Dual Threat Show hosted by BG12 where Bulldogs’ Asia Avinger details her experience with Kobe Bryant, her WNBA ROTY picks, and more in the video below.