2025-26 Season
DEMAR DEROZAN
2025-26 Season
DEMAR DEROZAN
PBP Credit: Every play is analyzed from play-by-play data. Scorers get difficulty-adjusted credit, assisters get creation value based on the shot opportunity they created, and turnovers are classified by type. Shot difficulty is derived from 1M+ shots across 4 seasons. Full methodology
TEAM COMPARISON
of 17 teammates (10+ games, 10+ min)
Similar Players
Same position, closest production profile this season.
SKILL DNA
Percentile rank vs 245 Guards with 10+ games
THE SEASON SO FAR
DeMar DeRozan's first twenty games were defined by a maddening tug-of-war between brilliant isolation scoring and the hidden costs of his defensive apathy. When he fell in love with contested mid-range pull-ups, his value plummeted. This was perfectly illustrated on 10/26 vs LAL, where his 21 points yielded an ugly -8.4 impact score because he entirely bogged down the half-court offense. Similarly, his 29 points on 11/01 vs MIL masked a negative -3.5 impact, dragged into the red by glaring defensive lapses that completely negated his buckets. Yet, when DeRozan engaged without the ball, his advanced metrics exploded. Look no further than 11/22 vs DEN. Despite scoring a modest 17 points, he generated a massive +14.3 impact score driven entirely by high-level defensive rotations and consistent hustle metrics. He eventually achieved complete offensive dominance on 11/24 vs MIN, pouring in 33 points with masterful midrange execution and elite foul-drawing to post a staggering +19.2 impact.
Wild inconsistency and a Jekyll-and-Hyde approach to shot selection defined this turbulent stretch of the season for DeRozan. He occasionally found ways to influence winning without dominating the ball, like on 12/20 vs POR where a modest 15-point outing yielded a +9.1 impact score because he consistently blew up passing lanes to generate elite defensive value. Yet, raw scoring totals often masked underlying flaws in his game. During the 12/08 vs IND matchup, he dropped 20 points but posted a -0.1 impact, dragged down by glaring defensive lapses in isolation coverage. His shot diet was a constant tightrope walk. When he operated with patience, he was unstoppable, scorching the nets for 32 points on 14-of-19 shooting to drive a massive +19.4 impact on 01/12 vs LAL. He remains a lethal offensive weapon, but his overall value swings wildly depending on his defensive engagement and willingness to avoid empty-calorie jumpers.
This stretch was defined by a maddening tug-of-war between DeRozan's reliance on ball-stopping isolation and his flashes of clinical efficiency. When he leaned too heavily into his bag of tricks, the offense stagnated around him, as seen during his 23-point outing on 01/20 vs MIA. A steady diet of one-on-one play inflated his box score that night but stalled the broader offensive engine, resulting in a sluggish -2.1 impact score. Conversely, when he operated within the flow of the system, his surgical shot selection routinely punished defensive rotations. On 02/01 vs WAS, he poured in 32 points and generated a massive +9.0 impact score by taking exactly what the defense gave him. He even found ways to contribute when his jumper abandoned him entirely. During a brutal shooting night on 02/19 vs ORL, he salvaged a +1.4 impact rating alongside just 13 points by using his veteran savvy to draw contact and manufacture trips to the foul line.
IMPACT TIMELINE
Game-by-game performance vs average. Green = above average, red = below.
Very consistent. DeRozan posts positive impact in 78% of games — you almost always get a productive night. Scoring varies by ~9 points, but the overall contribution stays positive.
Middle-of-the-road efficiency — shoots 45%+ from the field in 64% of games. Not automatic, but not a problem either.
Average defender. DeRozan doesn't hurt you defensively, but he's not making opponents uncomfortable either.
Performance has dropped off. First-half impact: +10.7, second-half: +7.4. Worth watching whether it's fatigue, injury, or opponents adjusting.
Tends to go on runs. Longest hot streak: 13 games. Longest cold streak: 4 games.
MATCHUP HISTORY
Based on 75 games with tracking data. Shows who guarded this player on offense and who he guarded on defense, with their shooting stats in those matchups.
ON OFFENSE: WHO GUARDED HIM
His shooting stats against each primary defender this season
ON DEFENSE: WHO HE GUARDED
How opponents shot when he was the primary defender. Lower FG% = better defense.
SEASON STATS
GAME LOG
77 games played
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