Raptors won’t rush DeRozan
As team takes cautious approach with hurt star, he joins coaching staff
TORONTO The Toronto Raptors are taking a conservative approach to DeMar DeRozan’s groin injury treatment, and are not setting a timeline for his return.
DeRozan, in the meantime, has asked to join the Raptors’ coaching staff so he can make the most of his time off the court. The Raptors could not contain LeBron James and the Cavaliers Friday night, losing 105-91.
“I think this is going to definitely help me out mentally, just becoming more of a student of the game and really scouting and looking at the game a different way,” DeRozan said. “Just understanding a lot more about the game … seeing how coaches approach the game, scouting games. I talked to (coach Dwane) Casey about sitting in on the meetings and being a part of that and educating myself on that end.”
DeRozan spoke to the media for the first time since he tore a tendon in his groin in a game against Dallas on Nov. 28. Friday’s game against the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers marked the fourth game he missed.
The Raptors all-star had only missed 11 games in total in his previous five NBA seasons, and the player known for his work ethic isn’t happy with being idle. He said he knew, when he went down midway through the third quarter — he lay on the court for several minutes before being helped to the dressing room — that the injury wasn’t something he could shake off.
“It’s definitely tough, I’m used to being out there,” DeRozan said. “(But) I always look at it like it could be worse. It could be a lot worse. I’m still going to come back, I’m still going to play. When I got up and walked off I knew I was okay, but whatever it was, was going to take some time.”
DeRozan said he sought advice for his recovery from Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, who returned to playing after rupturing his Achilles tendon.
“I talked to him and we had a great conversation about just being able to stay positive,” DeRozan said. “Obviously he had a tougher injury than me, but staying positive, what he did to grow mentally … that really gave me some good insight.”
Alex McKechnie, the Raptors’ director of sports science, said surgery isn’t an option for DeRozan’s injury.
“The way to approach this at the moment is, we’re taking a multif aceted, conservative approach to this. We’ve done some scans, we’ve identified a little tearing in the muscle.