Raptors' DeRozan on injury: 'This is going to definitely help me out mentally'

DeMar DeRozan is dealing with the most severe injury of his basketball career. Considering that he won't need surgery and could be back sometime next month, he should probably count himself fortunate in that regard.

Still, with his Toronto Raptors in the midst of the best 20-game start in franchise history, the six-year vet who's been with the franchise through some of its lowest lows is understandably bummed about being sidelined now. 

"It's definitely tough, I'm used to being out there," DeRozan told reporters before the Raptors lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday. 

"If there’s not no basketball game on, I’m playing Madden," he added. "That’s been my day, every single day, just to keep my sanity." 

Playing Madden all day (which doesn't immediately seem like the ideal way to maintain one's sanity) isn't all DeRozan plans to do while he's out of commission. 

"I think this is going to definitely help me out mentally, just becoming more of a student of the game and really scouting and looking at the game a different way," DeRozan said. "Just understanding a lot more about the game, outside of being a basketball player, honestly. Seeing how coaches approach the game, scouting games. I talked to (Raptors coach Dwane) Casey about sitting in on the meetings and being a part of that and educating myself on that end."

As much as that sounds like boilerplate, positive-spin rhetoric, DeRozan has demonstrated a keenness and ability to diversify his game and turn his weaknesses into strengths. This season he's built himself into a reliable wing defender, and as much as he's typically lauded for scoring, the Raptors have really fallen to pieces without him at the defensive end. 

The Raps have gone 2-3 in DeRozan's absence (if you include the game in which he got injured), posting the league's second-worst defensive rating over that span. Before the injury, they had the league's sixth-ranked defense and a 13-2 record. 

"I always look at it like it could be worse," DeRozan said. "It could be a lot worse. I'm still going to come back, I'm still going to play. When I got up and walked off I knew I was okay, but whatever it was, was going to take some time."

While trying to keep his spirits up, DeRozan says he's found solace in the support of his teammates. 

"Amir (Johnson) texted me one night, a couple nights ago, and he just said he was walking down the hotel hallway screaming my name and he was used to me popping my head out the door," DeRozan said. "Something like that goes so far because it just shows the appreciation that your teammates have for you and the relationship that you have together."