DeMar DeRozan Says He Modeled His Game After Miami Heat Legend Dwayne Wade

Chicago Bulls star DeMar DeRozan recently revealed his style of play stems from the play of Miami Heat great Dwayne Wade.

DeRozan joined Iman Shumpert’s Uninterrupted podcast prior to the start of the 2023 NBA season. Shumpert asked DeRozan about which player he had taken aspects of their game.

“I was a primary two, so I always had to deal with D-Wade,” DeRozan said. “He was a motherf*****. Being fast, quick, the way he reject. If he don’t got the reject he’d take your a** to the post, pump fake, and that’s where a lot my game started to come from, using the pump fake from D-Wade.”

DeRozan spent the first 10 years of his NBA career as a shooting guard. He has since transitioned to play more as a forward later in his career.

DeRozan has faced off against the Heat 47 times over his career. He has averaged 22.7 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.0 assists in those games. DeRozan also defeated the Heat in their only playoff matchup. The Toronto Raptors won a seven-game series in the second round of the 2016 playoffs,

DeRozan went into further depth about how his game resembles Wade's.

“Getting to the mid-range, picking your spots, using your athletic ability, getting downhill, seeing D-Wade so much really made me feel like s*** I got to add a lot of this aspect to the game,” he added.

DeRozan has consistently made the mid-range shot as good as any other player in the NBA. DeRozan’s scoring ability has landed in the top ten in points during six seasons.

Casey Fahrer is a contributor to Inside The Heat. He can be reached at caseyfahrer716@gmail.com.

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