Several NBA players have ripped the Toronto Raptors for showing no loyalty to DeMar DeRozan by trading him to the San Antonio Spurs for Kawhi Leonard, but one NHL player has a totally different outlook on the situation.
Milan Lucic, who was a fan favorite in Boston before the Bruins abruptly traded him to the Los Angeles Kings, unloaded on DeRozan in an appearance on Barstool Sports’ “Spittin’ Chiclets” podcast.
“He’s being a little bitter b—h at the organization for trading him for Kawhi Leonard — literally a top five player in the league,” Lucic said.
Lucic was then asked if he was offended that he wasn’t tipped off that the Bruins were trading him after he was instrumental in helping the team win a Stanley Cup in 2011 and make another deep playoff run in 2013, and the 30-year-old insisted he was not.
“No, man. I wasn’t offended,” he said. “At the end of the day, it’s a business. Unless you’re (Sidney) Crosby or (Connor) McDavid or LeBron (James), you’re just another guy, just another player. For me, I understood they were trying to go in a different direction. How could I be bitter?”
As for DeRozan, Lucic said he has even less of a reason to complain because of the team he was traded to.
“When I hear him talk about the bitterness and the disrespect and all that type of stuff, it’s like, you didn’t get traded to frickin’ Cleveland,” Lucic added. “You got traded to San Antonio, a team that competes for a title every year. You get to be coached by the Bill Belichick of basketball with Gregg Popovich. You feel like you’re being disrespected? Come on man, you’re still making $30 million a year living in San Antonio with no state tax. Give me a break, man. Nobody feels bad for you. F— off.”
The biggest issue with DeRozan seems to be that he was assured earlier in the offseason that he would not be traded, but things change. Players who are still with the team are also reportedly upset by what the Raptors didn’t do in the immediate wake of the deal.
Lucic has a point, but we don’t know everything that went on behind the scenes before and after the DeRozan trade. Still, professional athletes get paid plenty of money, and the element of surprise is ingrained in their job description.
