DeMar DeRozan Still Shocked With Spurs Trade, Didn't Get Respect He 'Deserved'

DeMar DeRozan spoke at length for the first time following his trade from the Toronto Raptors to the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday.

The trade was finalized last week as DeRozan, a Toronto fan favorite and one of the best players in the league, was included in a package along with Jakob Poltl and a protected 2019 first round draft pick in exchange for disgruntled Spurs star Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.

Many questioned the risk the Raptors took as it was well-known that Leonard preferred a move to his native Los Angeles while with just one year remaining on his deal, he could leave as an unrestricted free agent at the end of next season.

In addition, the Toronto franchise were criticized for trading away a player that had become synonymous with their basketball team and who had helped them finish the regular season as the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference in 2017/18.

Raptors team president Masai Ujiri would later apologize to DeRozan for a gap in communication but mentioned that he was giving his team a chance to build something with a player of Leonard's ability and ultimately change their fortunes, especially after they were swept by a poor but LeBron James-led Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round of the playoffs.

DeRozan was not pleased with those comments as the 28-year-old reflected on the move in an interview with ESPN on Tuesday.

"I mean, when you say 'them,' that's kind of frustrating. Like, who is 'them'? You put the blame on just me and [former coach Dwane] Casey? Because obviously we are the only two who had to suffer from the loss that we had in the Cleveland series," DeRozan said. "But it's only one team that we lost to in the postseason -- and that team went to the Finals every single year."

"With an opportunity approaching itself, my mindset and the rest of my teammates' mindset was the only guy [LeBron James] who was in the way of making that happen leaves [to the Los Angeles Lakers]. Now we got a great opportunity to do something that we haven't been able to do. At the end of the day, I gave everything I had to that team. And it showed, it showed in the progress we made as a team and me as an individual. So when you put that out there saying "gave them chances" and "I have to do something"... It's B.S. to me," he said.

DeRozan also revealed he did not know he was going to be traded and would have preferred to have received a heads up as a courtesy as he felt he did not get the respect he deserved.

"I felt like I wasn't treated with what I sacrificed for nine years, with the respect that I thought I deserved," he explained. "By just giving me the say so of letting me know something's going on or it's a chance. That's all I wanted. That's all I wanted."

"I'm not saying, 'You don't have to trade me' or ... just let me know something is going on because I sacrificed everything. Just let me know. That's all I asked. Everybody know I'm the most low-maintenance person in the world. Just let me know, so I can prepare myself for whatever my next chapter is, and I didn't get that," he added.

DeRozan is "still in shock" with his move to San Antonio but is nonetheless excited to work under a legendary head coach such as Gregg Popovich. His final message was that the Spurs can expect the best version of DeRozan.

"A guy that's been proven to prove himself time and time again," DeRozan added of what the Spurs were getting. "This time around having the biggest chip on his shoulder ever. When they carry that over and play for a championship -- period."