Prior to tip-off between the Bulls and the Kings, DeMar DeRozan shared a special pregame moment with his former teammate Lonzo Ball. DeRozan embraced Ball before the game, in what was a special moment for Ball as well. He was making his first start since suffering his initial knee injury almost three years ago. With Coby White out of the lineup, Ball took his place as the team’s starting point guard.

The Kings got the last laugh though, as they pulled off a 124-119 win against the Bulls. But Ball was brilliant in his start, finishing with 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting from three-point range. It’s certainly a welcome sign for the Bulls as Ball continues to round back into form.

On the Kings’ side of things, they have now won seven straight games, making that seven of their last eight, after firing Mike Brown as head coach. The only game they lost during this stretch was in the immediate aftermath of the Brown firing against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Against his former team, DeRozan finished with 21 points and three assists. When the Kings first acquired DeRozan in the offseason, they were hoping to emerge as a contender in the Western Conference. But a poor start to the 2024-25 season lead to the Brown firing. But it appears as if they’ve turned the corner.

The Kings have climbed over .5oo with the win, to 20-19, and they are in 9th place in the West standings. During this eight-game stretch, DeRozan has been averaging 21.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 4.0 assists with splits of 47.3 percent shooting from the field, 32.1 percent shooting from the three-point line and 88.9 percent shooting from the free-throw line, as per StatMuse.

Prior to the game, the Bulls also honored DeRozan with a tribute video.

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