DeMar DeRozan can’t stop talking about the Lakers

Sep 29, 2022 - 9:20 PM

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There are few sagas that have been relived as much and as willfully as DeMar DeRozan’s failed quest to join the Lakers in the summer of 2021. It’s one that has been retold countless, a story of how DeMar wanted to come to the Lakers, LeBron seemingly expressed interest in him being a Laker, the Lakers at one point wanted him to become a Laker and, yet, he did not become a Laker.

At first and in a vacuum, it was an interesting story to retell. But over a year and countless recollections later, it’s kind of just relitigating something that doesn’t need to be relitigated. And thus, DeMar won’t stop talking about it, the latest time on an episode of JJ Redick’s The Old Man and The Three podcast.

Back in November of last year in a post in which DeMar told Chris Haynes it was a “done deal” that he was joining the Lakers (sound familiar?), I compiled a list of all the times DeMar talked about the Lakers and, most specifically, how much he wanted to play for the team.

Here’s that list again:

• Nov. 15, 2021 - DeRozan says joining the Lakers “almost happened” during the offseason.
• Oct. 18, 2021 - In an interview with Draymond Green on Bleacher Report, DeRozan says he wanted to come home this summer.
• Oct. 9, 2021 — DeRozan tells Shams Charania of The Athletic it would have been a “hell of an opportunity” to play with the Lakers this season.
• July 31, 2021 - Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times reports that DeRozan had his “sights set” on joining the Lakers but he wouldn’t take a “significant” pay cut after the team traded for Westbrook.
• July 26, 2021 - DeRozan tells Shannon Sharpe of Fox Sports 1 that it would be a “great opportunity” to come to Los Angeles and play with Anthony Davis and James.
• July 23, 2021 - Brad Turner of the Los Angeles Times reports that DeRozan is willing to take a pay cut to join the Lakers.
• Nov. 13, 2020 - On the “All The Smoke” podcast, DeRozan says he was honored to be linked in trade talks with the Lakers.
• Nov. 23, 2016 - DeRozan reveals that it was hard to say no to the Lakers during free agency before returning to the Raptors in an interview with Marc Spears of The Undefeated.
• July 23, 2016 - In an interview with Mark Medina, then of the Los Angeles Daily News, DeRozan says that joining the Lakers was something that would “cross your mind” as an L.A. native.
• June 30, 2016 - The Lakers were among the teams to meet with DeRozan in free agency, according to Haynes.
• May 29, 2016 - Per a report by Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report, the Lakers are “aren’t that high” on DeRozan.

Since publishing that extensive list, DeMar has talked about what level of pay cut he would have actually taken to join the Lakers on top of this post. So, for those keeping track, that is five times DeRozan has spoken about wanting to join the Lakers last year and not being able to, so you can understand the exhaustion of the narrative.

There is no argument that needs to continue to be made. Check any of those previous four posts in the last calendar year to see more fleshed-out arguments. It’s just exhausting at this point. It didn’t happen, maybe it should have or maybe it shouldn’t. A year later is too long to keep relitigating it.

Just let it go.

For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude.