DeMar DeRozan thought mural was ‘fake,' says it gives him extra hunger

SAN ANTONIO – DeMar DeRozan was welcomed to San Antonio before he stepped foot in the city.

Local artist Nik Soupe of Los Otros Murals painted a mural of the new Spurs guard at Rudy’s Seafood after DeRozan was traded to the Spurs for disgruntled star Kawhi Leonard.

DeRozan spoke during Spurs Media Day on Monday and was asked what went through his mind when he saw the mural. 

“Honestly, the day I saw it, I thought it was fake,” DeRozan said in amazement. “I was at my camp and my cousin showed me and I was like, ‘Who drew this? Who photoshopped this?' I didn’t think it was real until later on it went viral.”

“To see that, it really gave me one of those feelings, where it was like, 'They love me like this already?’” DeRozan said. “It gives you that extra hunger to want to go out there and do something for the fans and make them feel better than I felt in that moment."

The murals at Rudy’s Seafood have become a popular destination for Spurs fans to take photos and post them on social media.

Other murals feature head coach Gregg Popovich and franchise icons Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, David Robinson and point guard Dejounte Murray.