If you watched the Toronto Raptors take on the Chicago Bulls in a win-or-go-home game Wednesday night, you may have heard a jarring shriek every time the home team stepped to the free throw line.
It was hard to miss, for both fans at Scotiabank Arena and those watching at home, and may have had an impact on the Raps.
Toronto shot 18-for-36 from the line and lost the game 109-105 after Chicago overcame a 19-point deficit to advance to the next stage of the play-in tournament.
But who was the culprit, whose high-pitched screams reverberated through the arena every time the Raptors shot the ball?
It was Bulls’ guard and former Toronto Raptor DeMar DeRozan’s nine-year-old daughter, Diar.
“She went viral,” DeRozan said during a press conference that followed the game. “I kept hearing something during the game. When they were doing free throws, somebody missed and I looked back and was like ‘Damn, that’s my daughter screaming,’” he said with a laugh.
Memes and tweets about Diar’s defensive distraction efforts quickly made the rounds on social media during the game and after, which helped to reduce the sting of a season-ending loss for Raptors fans.
“She actually owned us,” one Reddit user said. “Everybody say hello to your 2023 play-in MVP,” someone wrote on Twitter.
Toronto Raptors guard Fred VanVleet (23) and teammate guard Gary Trent Jr. (33) walk off the court for a time out during second half NBA basketball action against the Chicago Bulls in Toronto on Wednesday, April 12, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
DeRozan revealed his daughter was insistent about coming to Wednesday’s game and recalled when she sat at the baseline when he wore the Raptors red.
“I almost said ‘No’ because she’s in school back home. She kept asking, she was just adamant about coming and supporting. And I just said, ‘Alright, you can miss one day of school and come to a game and I’m glad I did. I owe her some money for sure.”
At one point, All-Star Pascal Siakam could have tied the game after he was fouled on a 3-point attempt, but missed two of the three shots. Diar screamed during all three attempts.
If Toronto had won the relatively new NBA play-in game Wednesday night, they would have gone on to face the Miami Heat and another former Raptor in Kyle Lowry.
Asked if Diar would be in attendance at that game, DeRozan said no.
“She gotta go back to school,” he laughed.
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