NEW YORK — Denzel was spot-on.
That’s why DeMar DeRozan posted a clip from the movie “Training Day’’ in which Alonzo Harris — played by Denzel Washington — tells Ethan Hawke’s character: “This is a newspaper, right? It’s 90% bulls---, but it’s entertaining. That’s why I read it.’’
A day later, DeRozan decided to add his own words to the mix.
There was a story by Bleacher Report on Thursday that said “rival NBA executives’’ believed DeRozan would ask for a trade at the end of the season if the Bulls don’t right their ship.
And while DeRozan wasn’t about to deny that there might be some executives who actually feel that way, those execs must also be tone-deaf to the last 14 years of his NBA career.
“If I sign up for anything, my goal is to finish whatever I sign up for,’’ DeRozan told the Sun-Times. ‘‘That’s with anything in life. I signed up to be a father, not just a part-time father. I treat everything I do that way.
“I mean, 14 years in my career, I’ve never talked about a trade, asked for a trade, anything. So when I see something like that [story], I try to make fun of it more than anything.’’
Hence the video he put on Instagram, which obviously received some attention because DeRozan doesn’t post much on social media and it was clever.
“If they want to make up something,’’ DeRozan said, ‘‘let me try to find something funny to play off of it. That’s all it is. I don’t necessarily get caught up in it, but if I can poke some fun at it, I’ll do that, for sure.’’
If it’s the Bulls who want to move off DeRozan at some point during the remainder of the three-year, $85 million deal he signed in 2021, that’s on them. But DeRozan reiterated that he would never demand a trade, no matter the circumstances.
DeRozan has been traded twice, and he knows how difficult that is, not only for him but for his family. That’s why he felt like the rumor came out of left field.
And while it might fluster another player, DeRozan isn’t bothered at all.
“Obviously, when you’re young in the league, don’t know nothing, you hear anything of that nature, and, yeah, it bothers you because you wonder where it came from,’’ DeRozan said. “The older I am, hell, I’m going to be honest with you — there’s nothing that bothers me. No he-say, she-say stuff. Now if my mom was saying some stuff [in the media], that would bother me, but, no, don’t nothing bother me.
“We live in a world that’s full of opinionated people, and anyone can come up with something. These days I see fake pages acting like they’re [ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski] or something. I just don’t get caught up in that. But if I’m in the mood, I’ll make fun of something like I did [Thursday].’’
It would get interesting, however, if teammates actually start making their demands to be moved public. DeRozan admitted that he has never been on a team in which a player did that, but what if Zach LaVine insists he wants out? How would DeRozan take that?
“I could never tell a grown man how they should feel about their business because there may be more to it,’’ DeRozan said. “It might not be just basketball. It might be something personal or family-related. I never want to discourage anyone or make them feel worse about a situation they’re going through.’’
