DeMar DeRozan on his daughter: 'She went viral' originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
Diar DeRozan, the 9-year-old daughter of Bulls forward DeMar DeRozan, stole the show on defense Wednesday night during the Chicago Bulls play-in game against the Toronto Raptors.
She was first seen on video screaming during a Jakob Poeltl free-throw shot from underneath the basket. The video gained some positive traction on Twitter, as the volume is noticeably loud on the broadcast and in the arena.
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The ESPN broadcast then showed her in action screaming during a Fred VanVleet free throw towards the end of the third quarter. The crew commended her efforts to distract her father's opponent and former team. Bleacher Report released a highlight reel of screams she yelled during the game.
Her dad chuckled at the commotion after the game.
"She went viral," DeRozan said. "I haven't let it soak in yet. But that's her. I kept hearing something during the game and somebody missed and I looked back and I was like 'Damn, that's my daughter screaming?'"
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DeMar mentioned Diar called him to ask if she could attend the game in Toronto. She went to games at a younger age when DeMar played for the Raptors. DeMar debated in his head to allow her, keeping her school attendance in mind, but concluded she could miss school to attend.
"She kept asking," DeRozan said. "She was just adamant about coming to support. I said 'Alright, you can miss one day of school and come to a game.' I'm glad I did. I owe her some money for sure."
Thank goodness he did.
The Raptors shot horribly from the free-throw line, at an abysmal 50 percent clip (18-of-36). Diar had some impact on the floor, as her dad admitted he heard her while playing on the floor.
Unfortunately, school comes first for Diar. DeMar mentioned to reporters she will not attend the Bulls' next play-in game against the Miami Heat. The Bulls could use her, considering the Heat shot 83.1 percent from the charity stripe during the regular season, the second-best clip in the NBA.
Either way, the Bulls came out on top on Wednesday, 109-105, erasing a 19-point deficit to knock off the Raptors and become the first 10-seed in NBA history to win a play-in game.
Special shout out to Diar. There was five of her out there.
