'Was I the Problem? — DeRozan Reflects on the 2018-19 Toronto Raptors and Playing Against James

Former Toronto Raptors star DeMar DeRozan reflected on playing against LeBron James and watching the Raptors win the NBA Finals

It wasn't easy being DeMar DeRozan during the Toronto Raptors 2018-19 championship run. On one hand, those were his guys, the guys he grew up with in Toronto for the nine years he spent with the Raptors. On the other hand, the organization he worked so hard to build was finally succeeding without him.

"It definitely was tough, man, it was tough," DeRozan told The Old Man and The Three Podcast with JJ Redick and Tommy Alter. "I was there nine years, went through everything, accomplished so much things that people said we would never be able to do and that, I think for me, that's what drove me my whole career, all the naysayers, like my whole time there, us trying to build a winning program. For me to turn into an all star starter, see the all star game come to Toronto for the first time, make the playoffs, win every time of award you could think of and kind of trend in the right direction and for the one person (LeBron James) we only lost to leave and us not to have a chance to see what that would have turned into, for me personally, to leave and then to see those guys get to where they was going, it definitely was tough."

"I wouldn't even lie, it was tough to see it," he continued. "You kind of feel like, was I the problem? Then you be like 'Nah, I wasn't the problem, we was doing the same thing, we just couldn't get past one person.'"

DeRozan had a chance to reflect on his time in Toronto and how tough it was playing against James, who is one win away from his fourth NBA title. For three straight seasons, DeRozan's Raptors were sent packing by James and the Cavaliers.

"Going into the playoffs our whole mindset was we've just got to get past one guy," DeRozan said. "We're going to get to where we're going to go, we're going to make it to the Finals, we'll worry about whoever we're going to play when we get to the Finals. It was always about trying to get past one guy, and that was the toughest test to get past. Not to take nothing away from nobody, but you see the year he left, they was able to get there and were able to win a championship."

Had James not been there during DeRozan's tenure, the Raptors might have had a chance. They looked like one of the NBA's best teams in 2017-18, winning 59 games, the second most in the league, but James was too smart and to skilled for Toronto.

"I remember there was a play we were trying to run and one of our teammates forgot the play and 'Bron told him the play, like it was some crazy sh*t, it was some crazy stuff," DeRozan said. "It just shows you how locked in this dude be when it comes to winning time. You see it when he's out there on both ends."

When James finally left the East and the Raptors broke through, DeRozan felt conflicted for a moment, but eventually, he came around and supported his former teammates.

"I had such a close bond with all those guys, obviously, everybody knows me and Kyle [Lowry]'s relationship, but especially those young guys, we molded those guys and I've never seen young dudes work as hard as they work. When it comes to Freddy VanVleet, a Norm [Powell], a Pascal [Siakam] all these guys, I used to go to their G-League games and they'd show up the next morning with us for shootaround and they was so locked in so to see those guys perform the way they performed, I was always constantly talking to them, keeping them positive if they lost a game, if they was going through something, if they needed whatever, through the whole process I was talking to them," DeRozan said. "As soon as they won I texted everybody a long text congratulating them because I was happy for them because I knew how rough it was being there, playing for 'em, it was tough playing there. Nobody never gave us nothing, we had to fight, earn everything we wanted."