DeMar DeRozan was just a kid, unlearned in the ways of the NBA, a bit quiet, a bit hesitant, gifted but not entirely sure of himself.
And he started really listening to a coach who had faith in the youngster and who was willing to put up with mistakes as long as the kid showed a greater level of confidence in himself.
The coach was Jay Triano and he saw something in the kid from California that needed nurturing.
And that’s the way an all-star was born.
“I remember, he gave me the confidence my second year to be the scorer that I am today,” DeRozan recalls.