DeMar DeRozan Gives Daughter Diar Credit for Bulls' Play-in Win Over Raptors: 'I Owe Her Some Money'

The nine-year-old went viral for her distracting shrieks whenever a Raptors player was about to shoot free throws

DeMar DeRozan's nine-year-old daughter Diar has earned some major credit with her dad after her piercing shrieks during the Toronto Raptor's free throws seemingly helped his team, the Chicago Bulls, pull off a thrilling comeback in the must-win NBA Play-In Tournament.

Nearly every time the Raptors were sent to the free-throw line, Diar would get excited and release an eardrum-rattling scream, just as each player was about to shoot their shot. The Raptors missed 18 free throws in the 109-105 loss.

When Raptors' All-Star Pascal Siakam was sent to the free-throw line in the last seconds of the game with an opportunity to tie, he ended up missing two of his three attempts, all to the sound of Diar's screams.

The shrieks were so powerful that Diar swiftly went viral on social media, with fans calling her the MVP. The ESPN broadcast would even zoom in on Diar during free throws as she sat courtside at Toronto's Scotiabank Arena.

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DeRozan, 33, who previously played for the Raptors for nine seasons and is still a fan favorite in Toronto, spoke to reporters about his daughter's new-found fame after the game.

"Man, I just seen it, she went viral," the six-time NBA-All Star said. "I haven't let it soak in yet. Everyone keeps saying. But that's all right. I kept hearing something during the game and it was on a free throw, somebody missed and I was like, 'Damn, that's my daughter screaming?' I was just making sure she was all right, though."

DeRozan, who scored 23 points to help send the Bulls to the NBA Playoffs, said his daughter wasn't even initially supposed to be at the game. "What's crazy, my daughter called me the other day when she was getting out of school... and she said, 'Dad, can I come to the Toronto game? I remember coming to all the Toronto games' when she was a kid," he told reporters.

"And I almost said no because she's in school back home. She kept asking, she was just adamant about coming and support. And I said, '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," DeRozan added.

After the game, Siakam admitted their free throw woes were a big reason they lost a game, in which Toronto was at one stage leading by 19 points. "A bad free throw night… at the end of the day it's probably going to come down to those free throws," Siakam said, though he also revealed he wasn't distracted by Diar screaming.

If Diar's tactics were to blame, she helped keep the Raptors to the team's worst free-throw percentage since 1997, hitting only 50 percent, according to StatMuse.

Raptors point guard Fred Van Vleet made free throws this season at nearly 90 percent, but he managed only 50 percent in his six attempts on Wednesday. OG Anunoby usually makes free throws at 83 percent, but only managed 37.5 percent from his eight attempts against the Bulls.

The Play-In loss could have major repercussions for the Toronto team, with rumors Nick Nurse may have coached his last game.

The Chicago Bulls' battle to make the NBA Playoffs continues Friday against Jimmy Butler's Miami Heat. The winner of that game will secure the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference and will square off against the number-one-ranked Milwaukee Bucks.

Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks to a 58-24 record this season, the best in the league.

In Wednesday's other NBA Play-In game, the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 123-118 with second-year player Josh Giddey notching 31 points and 10 assists alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's 32 points.

The Thunder will face the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday for the final NBA Playoff spot in the Western Conference, with the winner to face two-time MVP Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets in round one.

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