The Chicago Bulls are playing like they have turned back the clock to their famous ‘three peat’ season. The Bulls have won all four of their matches this season having compiled a superb roster in this offseason. They have added some great players to their lineup but 32-year-old veteran DeMar DeRozan’s addition is second to none. The former Spurs man is in his 13th season in the NBA and he is only getting better with age.
DeRozan is well supported by players like Lonzo Ball, Nikola Vucevic, Zach LaVine and Alex Caruso. Overall the Bulls are looking like a team to beat this season.
DeRozan, who guided the Toronto Raptors to the NBA title went up against his former team in a Bulls outfit this Monday. The Air Diesel came up with a mammoth performance scoring 26 points and leading the Bulls to a 111-108 win. It was a back and forth game with both teams were looking to take advantage but ultimately the Bulls managed to snatch the win.
After the match, the 32-year-old veteran was asked about the league’s new rules and the reduced number of free throws awarded by the referees. Answering that question Double D might have taken a slight dig at players like James Harden and Chris Paul.
The new NBA season came with new rules as the organisers decided to be more strict with the ways referees offered free throws. The observations have been more strict and hence the number of free throws have considerably reduced. The organisers felt that it was needed as players used to draw easy fouls and would score points by going to the free-throw line.
DeRozan has not lost a lot of points despite the rule change. His free throw points percentage has remained the same even after the implementation of the rules.
Players like Chris Paul and James Harden are often criticised for getting the light calls in their favour, Hence DeRozan took a slight dig at them when he stated, “I don’t know. I don’t flop, I don’t know. That’s not a knock on anybody who flopped. My mentality is always to be aggressive. I don’t know, free throws are down across the league, but I can’t worry about that.”
It will be exciting to see how the players manage to live with the new NBA rules. Especially players like Harden and CP3, hopefully, they will come up with something new and mesmerize the entire league.