DeMar DeRozan made Chicago Bulls history with his performance vs. Washington Wizards

After he joined Michael Jordan as the only Chicago Bull to drop 37 or more in a season-opener, DeMar DeRozan once again rewrote the team's history books with his performance against Washington Wizards.

30/5/5

The 33-year-old forward became the first player in the organization's history to record at least 30 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists in the first two games of the season. He put up 32 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists in a 102-100 loss to the Wizards.

DeMar DeRozan tonight:

✅ 32 PTS
✅ 6 REB
✅ 6 AST

DeRozan is the first player in @chicagobulls history to record at least 30p/5r/5a in each of his first two games of a season. pic.twitter.com/nMXPYTt9t0
— Justin Kubatko (@jkubatko) October 22, 2022

DeMar shot 11-for-23 from the floor, 0-for-2 from the three-point line, and 10-for-11 from the free-throw line. He committed 3 turnovers and had 1 steal in 36 minutes of action, finishing the game as the only Bulls' starter with a positive +/- of +1.

DeRozan orchestrated Chicago's second-half comeback by scoring 6 points in the final 3 minutes of the game, including a slam dunk with 30 seconds left that tied the game at 100 apiece. The 5x All-Star nearly even won it for the Bulls, but his 3-point attempt at the buzzer rimmed out.

“I was trying to come off Vooch and at least find an angle, try to turn the corner, but I was up so high,” DeRozan said. “They played it well. I couldn’t turn the corner, so I sized him up and tried to get the best look possible look; felt great, felt great.”

Shouldering the offense

Two games into the season, DeRozan is averaging 34.5 points, 6 rebounds, and 7.5 assists on 57.8 eFG%. The Bulls are 1-1 heading into tonight's matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Fortunately for Billy Donovan and Chicago, the team's All-Star shooting guard Zach LaVine will be available for the team's home debut at United Center.

“Yeah, he should play (Saturday),” Billy Donovan told the reporters prior to Friday's game in Washington. “I think it was after the last game with Miami, sitting down and talking and looking at the schedule, (we) felt like it was good to give him another game (off) here. Then he’ll be available (Saturday) against Cleveland provided that everything else goes well, which it should. He worked out (Thursday), and he’ll get some work in (Saturday) as well.’’

This is a huge relief for both the Bulls and LaVine, but also for DeRozan, who will finally have an elite scorer to take the load off of him on offense.