Veteran big man Tristan Thompson calls him the “Smooth Criminal.’’
The organization’s social media department labeled him “King in the Fourth.’’
His teammates simply call DeMar DeRozan “Deebo.’’
The list of nicknames for the Bulls’ veteran continued to grow, as did his legend, after he hit yet another game-winning clutch basket in Thursday’s victory over Atlanta.
Down three with 46.9 seconds left, DeRozan closed it to one with — of course — the mid-range jumper. Then after a stop, the ball was placed in DeRozan’s hands with 23 seconds left, and even with the double-team leaving Zach LaVine wide open, it was once again DeRozan, this time hitting a 14-footer and drawing the foul with 15.1 seconds left.
When the dust settled it was a 37-point game for DeRozan, and again done on a head-shaking efficiency of 15-for-21 from the field.
Death, taxes, DeRozan.
To get a perspective on what the 32-year-old has done in this streak just look at the company he joined. DeRozan is one of seven players in NBA history with eight-straight 35-plus-point games, but dig deeper in the numbers.
Take Michael Jordan’s 10-game streak of 35-plus-points back in the 1986-87 season. Jordan averaged 41.1 points per game in that run, hitting 15.3 shots per game and taking 32.1 per game for 48%. That included one game in which Jordan took 43 shots.
DeRozan has averaged 38.4 points per game, but was averaging only 24.2 shots per game and hitting at 62% from the field. Only once did he hit the 30-shot mark.
Bigger picture?
The Bulls went 3-7 in Jordan’s shooting binge, while the Bulls were 6-2 since the DeRozan takeover began.
That’s why the newest Bull was pushing for “Death and Taxes’’ to be the MVP.
“Like I said in the interview [on Wednesday], in my eyes he’s the MVP of our league,’’ Thompson said of DeRozan. “He’s playing at an MVP level. People need to give him his credit and give him his flowers because of what he’s able to do with this team. When things are getting stagnant and we need a big bucket or a big time shot, that’s what big-time players do.’’
And DeRozan has been big time, leading the NBA with 455 fourth-quarter points, with Giannis Antetokounmpo second at 400 points. Antetokounmpo has a slightly better shooting percentage than DeRozan in that final stanza — 57.1% to 55.8% — but DeRozan had more assists than the “Greek Freak’’ and a ridiculous plus-121 in plus/minus in the fourth.
“You love it and you hate it,’’ DeRozan said of having to win games late. “Of course, you don’t want to be down and have the pressure on yourself to try to pull out a game. But when you’re in those moments, you’ve got to take it on. I love the moments. I love the challenge. I love the opportunity. It’s fun to me.’’
That’s MVP-type talk and action, and Thompson would know, running with the likes of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving back in the day.
“I’ve played with some big time players,’’ Thompson said. “When it’s money time, you give them the ball and they make something happen. That’s what [DeRozan’s] been doing night in and night out. [Thursday] we were down four with under two minutes left and Javonte [Green] getting the rebound and making those free throws and DeMar with the and-one. That’s what the MVP of the league does. We’re going to do our best to keep riding that horse. It’s a blessing to be watching greatness.’’
