TORONTO — As the tide turned in the favor of the Chicago Bulls during Wednesday’s 109-105 play-in tournament win over the Toronto Raptors, one constant sound was like a metronome for the game — the well-timed screams of DeMar DeRozan’s 9-year-old daughter, Diar.
From her front-row seat, Diar saw an opportunity and snatched it. She was positioned directly under the basket, almost perfectly in the sight line of every player lining up for a free throw.
A basketball player herself, Diar knew when to time an ear-splitting shriek, hitting an especially shrill note each time a Toronto player launched a foul shot.
“I kept hearing something during the game,” DeMar DeRozan said. “And then there was one free throw somebody missed, and I looked back and was like, ‘Damn, that’s my daughter screaming?’”
At first the sound was just an annoyance slicing through the otherwise quiet arena during Raptors free throws. But as the game progressed, it accompanied a pattern.
The Raptors, who shot 78.4% from the line during the regular season, went 18-for-36 from the penalty stripe as they ceded a 19-point lead.
It’s debatable whether Diar actually threw off the Raptors — but she definitively caught the attention of fans throughout the league.
By the time DeMar entered the locker room after the game, his daughter had gone viral on Twitter as the X-factor in the win.
“I’m still soaking it in,” he said with a laugh.
Chicago Tribune Sports
Weekdays
A daily sports newsletter delivered to your inbox for your morning commute.
It wasn’t all negativity from Diar, who also modeled proper shooting form each time her father lined up across from her.
The support was welcomed by DeMar — even though he nearly kept his daughter from making the trip from Los Angeles, where she attends school with her three siblings.
Diar called DeMar to ask if she could accompany him to Wednesday’s game in Toronto, where she spent her early years watching her father play for the Raptors. But DeMar was worried about his daughter missing class in the middle of second semester.
Eventually Diar’s persistence won out, and DeMar agreed to let her play hooky. The result was an instant success for the Bulls, who became the first 10th seed to win a game in the brief history of the play-in tournament.
“She kept asking,” DeMar said. “She was just adamant about coming to support. And I just said, ‘All right, you can miss one day of school and come to a game.’ I’m glad I did. I owe her some money.”
The Bulls will have to face the Heat on Friday in Miami without their secret weapon — DeMar is intent on keeping Diar’s priorities straight.
“Nah,” he said when asked if she could tag along to the next play-in game. “She’s got to go back to school.”
