We love bringing you these kinds of stories, links to pieces relevant to local athletes that you may have missed.  DeMar DeRozan was still wearing a Compton Tarbabes jersey when we first started putting this website together in the late Winter/early Spring of 2008—when we went to go see two of his games, we went as fans of local basketball, not journalists.  Watching him throw a pass off the backboard to himself and dunk it was one of those moments that made us stop and say, “You know, people should really be able to see highlights of stuff like this.”  Two years later, we’ve posted thousands of stories about local athletes, and DeRozan has written a 2,000 word blog about his rookie season in the NBA.

It’s humbling, incredible stuff—he writes about his family watching him and having a hard time believing he’s playing against some of his favorite players from childhood (Shaq), checking Youtube and still being in disbelief that he was in a dunk contest, homesickness, the shock of being able to meet anyone he wants now that he’s an NBA player, and a bunch of other great tidbits (experiencing winter for the first time, etc).

It’s just silly to think that a guy we sat and watched in a high school gym 24 months ago is back home after playing 82 NBA games—but that’s part of what makes local sports so fun. 

Anyway, be sure to click the link above and read the blog—here’s a great drop quote:

Being an NBA player was everything I thought and more. Playing the 82 games, all of the traveling and playing against the best players in the world night in and night out, you really learn from it, you gain something from it. You appreciate the game for everything it’s worth and it makes you want to get that much better at it.

I’ve never taken anything for granted in my life, I just want to get better. To be an NBA player, it’s a blessing. Just being recognized by putting on an NBA jersey, that was a big deal for me and my family. At the same time, it’s been a year and, it still feels like a dream. It still is the dream. You love it. You just love the game.