The NBA continues to remind players that it’s a business and loyalty isn’t always repaid.
DeMar DeRozan had to learn that the hard way when the Toronto Raptors traded him to the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday for Kawhi Leonard.
After spending the first nine years of his career with the Raptors and re-signing with the team for five years when he was a free agent in 2016, DeRozan was sent packing to the Western Conference.
Making matters worse, DeRozan was reportedly told this summer that he wouldn’t be traded.
Meanwhile, @DeMar_DeRozan not backing off of claim he was lied to by Toronto regarding a potential trade, per source. Extremely upset.
— David Aldridge (@daldridgetnt) July 18, 2018
Former teammates and others players around the league came to DeRozan’s defence as the NBA world reacted to the trade on social media.
DeRozan vented himself on his Instagram story, while the Spurs’ social media team took a not-so-subtle shot at Leonard when they thanked him with a smaller font than they did for Danny Green.