NEW ORLEANS - When DeMar DeRozan found out he had made his first NBA All-Star Game two weeks ago, receiving the news on the team plane upon landing in Denver, he wasnt surprised but instead described the feeling as a surreal one. Now - 48 hours before the main event - the Raptors leading scorer is soaking it all in, still a little starry-eyed, mindful of how far he has come and what its taken to get him to this point. "Its starting to become real now," he told TSN.ca Friday afternoon, as the All-Star participants gathered in the cavernous ballroom of a New Orleans hotel for their annual media day circus. "I think when I really go out there, put the jersey on and head to the arena Sunday evening [it will really hit me]." The 24-year-old DeRozan does not have to look very far to find mementos of his NBA journey, the closest one will be sitting adjacent to him on the Eastern Conference teams bench when the game tips off on Sunday. Heat forward and fellow All-Star reserve Chris Bosh was one of the first to pull DeRozan aside upon arrival in New Orleans this weekend. Bosh - the Raptors last representative in the All-Star Game, four years ago - left for Miami following DeRozans rookie season. He, as much as anyone, can attest to DeRozans growth as a player and the message he had for his former teammate was just that. "Im proud of you," he told the Raptors guard. "It means a lot," DeRozan said of Boshs kind words. "We were just laughing because I remember being the only rookie, 19-years-old on the Raptors, him being a star and seeing all the things he was going through when he was [in Toronto] and how he had to carry the team on his back." "After he left I had to step up and learn. Its just crazy, we were laughing at how fast time flies. It seems like yesterday I was that rookie who wouldnt shoot the ball and passed it to Chris every time." There was pressure on DeRozan to contribute right out of the gate, starting 65 games - most of them alongside Bosh - as a rookie in Toronto. He was, to his own admission, a deer in the NBA headlights. He attempted fewer than seven shots per game - which more than doubled in his second year, without Bosh in the lineup - yet averaged less than an assist in over 21 minutes a night. At the time, becoming an All-Star was not even on his radar, his focus was self-preservation and proving his worth as an NBA player. "Youre always stuck in the moment," he remembered. "You stay on course with your everyday tasks and you work towards something like this, you just work every single day. I knew if I just stay consistent, stay focused and didnt get down on myself too much I knew I had a chance." Five seasons later - one year removed from signing a long-term contract extension - his work ethic has not wavered, if anything its gotten stronger, more relentless. "Im proud of DeMar," said Terrence Ross, who has become a protégé of DeRozans. "Hes put in so much work. To see him here is like, man, I wish we could give him more for all hes done. Im just happy hes here getting a chance to prove to the world what he can do." Now that hes here, now that hes come this far he knows not to take it for granted. DeRozan - who is tied for fourth in the league in minutes played, also nursing an ankle injury - could have used the time off but youll never get him to admit it. Hes honoured to be representing the third-place, division-leading Raptors on the world stage. He was caught off guard when his agent called to deliver the leagues invitation to participate in Saturdays Skills Challenge, an event usually reserved for point guards, one thats out of his comfort zone. Originally he declined but it didnt take much prodding to convince him to change his mind. "Everybody doesnt get a chance to be a part of All-Star Weekend," he said when he was announced as a participant last week. "The big thing for me is to go out there and have fun. I think it will be cool to go out there and represent my team as much as I can and you never know, I might mess around and win it." DeRozans attitude is a refreshing change of pace from many of todays star players who decline invitations to participate in All-Star Saturday Night each year to preserve their energy, prevent injury or simply because they feel like theyve graduated from it. Sure, LeBron still wont dunk but perhaps times are changing after all. For the first time since 1988 three All-Stars will compete in the Slam Dunk contest, one of them, Damian Lillard will participate in all five major events this weekend. His rationale is on par with DeRozans. "Im happy Im really a part of the weekend," said Lillard, another first-time All-Star. "Ive gotten great reception from the fans. Fans are excited about having someone who is participating in the All-Star Game being in all the events." DeRozan is considered a long shot to defeat Lillard, the reigning champion, in Saturdays Skills Challenge but hes not putting too much pressure on himself. For him, the weekend is all about embracing a new opportunity, his first real All-Star opportunity. Womens Ultra Boost Clearance . Top-seeded Djokovic, who is making only his second appearance this year after reaching the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, was a 6-3, 6-3 winner over 54th-ranked Istomin of Uzbekistan. "It wasnt as easy as the scoreline indicates," said Djokovic, who has won in Dubai on four occasions. Pure Boost Clearance .com) - Mike Miller scored a season-high 21 points in a rare start and the Cleveland Cavaliers bounced back from their worst loss of the season with a 95-91 win over the Brooklyn Nets. http://www.ultraboostclearance.com/ . - Justin Turner is at his best with runners in scoring position, and he delivered again in a big spot for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Adidas Ultra Boost Mens Clearance . Cleveland released the troubled wide receiver on Wednesday, an expected ending after Bess was arrested in January for assaulting a law enforcement officer at an airport and other bizarre behaviour. Ultra Boost Clearance . Those cheers seemed more special this time because the captains run on Broadway could soon be over. The adoration surely sounded much nicer to Callahan than all the recent trade talk.WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Only two Syracuse teams have won their first 20 games, and C.J. Fair has been a member of both. This current one, he says, is "a hard-fought 20-game winning streak." Not much came easy during the Oranges latest victory. No. 2 Syracuse matched the best start in program history Wednesday night, pulling away to beat Wake Forest 67-57 behind a strong second half from freshman Tyler Ennis. Ennis scored 16 of his 18 points after halftime and Fair finished with 16 points for the Orange (20-0, 7-0 Atlantic Coast Conference), while Trevor Cooney scored all eight of his in the final 1:45. Syracuse remained one of three unbeaten teams in Division I with No. 1 Arizona, which beat Stanford 60-57 on Wednesday, and No. 4 Wichita State. The Orange pulled away late while sidestepping a possible trap with a visit from No. 17 Duke coming up this weekend, and joined the 2011-12 group as the only Orange teams to start 20-0. "Weve got a long stretch ahead of us," Fair said. In their first visit to Tobacco Road as ACC members, they had to work for it against a Wake Forest team that had been perfect at home and tough on visitors in the top five. "It was just one of those games youre just trying to struggle through defensively, and we did just a good enough job defensively to be able to get the win," coach Jim Boeheim said. "You have to find a way to win these games, and this team has been able to do that." Travis McKie scored 12 points for the Demon Deacons (14-7, 4-4), and his free throw with 4:10 left pulled them to 54-49. But while Wake Forest came up empty on its next two trips down court, Cooney caught fire. "We needed one of those timely 3s to go in," McKie said. "If we just wouldve got three more of those 3s to go in, wed be looking at a different outcome." The guard buried a fall-away jumper that he called "the toughest shot I had all day." He followed that with two free throws to give Syracuse its first double-figure lead and streaked down court for an open-court dunk after a steal by Fair to put the Orange up 62-50 with 1:19 left.dddddddddddd. "I heard C.J. say, Shoot it," Cooney said. "And no one needs to tell me to shoot it." By then, they could look ahead to hosting the Blue Devils at the Carrier Dome in one of the seasons most widely anticipated matchups. Devin Thomas scored 12 points for Wake Forest, which had won 13 straight at Joel Coliseum and had won three straight home games against top-five teams -- a run that included a rout of then-No. 2 Miami last season. Just about all of the Demon Deacons key stats suggested they would be blown out: They shot 34 per cent, were outrebounded 55-35, made just three of their 20 3-point attempts and were 18 of 30 from the free throw line. "Theyre long and athletic, so their zone is definitely a force to be reckoned with," McKie said. "We had great looks. We just didnt knock it down." But some of the Oranges numbers were equally poor -- they shot 36 per cent and were 22 of 33 from the free throw line -- and that allowed Wake Forest to stay within striking distance for much of the game. "For the most part, we did a good job on their shooters, and when they got an open look, they just didnt make it," Boeheim said. "Same as us." Joel Coliseum was buzzing when Wake Forest turned an eight-point deficit into a one-possession game in the span of a few seconds midway through the second half. Robert Morris transfer Coron Williams swished a 3-pointer before Madison Jones swiped the ball from Cooney and hit a quick layup to make it 40-37 with 12 1/2 minutes left. Ennis, who was 0 for 6 from the field in the first half, followed by reeling off eight points -- all on drives down or across the lane -- in about 4 minutes to give the Orange a bit of breathing room. His finger roll helped Syracuse match its largest lead to that point, 48-40, with about 8 1/2 minutes left. Jerami Grant finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Orange. ' ' '