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In the past month, DeMar DeRozan has quietly elevated his game to another level and emerged as one of the top scorers in the sophomore class. While the Toronto Raptors have been struggling as of late, DeRozan has made huge strides and has become the focal point of the team’s offense.

DeRozan leads all sophomores in scoring in the month of January with 18.6 points per game and is showing that his summer of hard work paid off. After Chris Bosh left Toronto over the offseason, DeRozan recognized that the team needed a new face of the franchise and immediately got to work. This season, he has made an effort to lead his teammates and carry the scoring the load.

"I’m just being aggressive, man. From watching film to working on my weaknesses, I’m just trying to get better. I want to do as much as I can to try and help us win games," DeRozan said.

With that comes more attention from defenses, and that has forced him to struggle at times.

"It is different," DeRozan admitted. "You just have to learn from it and get better at those types of situations when they come your way."

While DeRozan has had an excellent month, his true coming out party could come in February. That’s when he’ll compete in his second consecutive Sprite Slam Dunk Contest, replacing an injured Brandon Jennings.

Last year, DeRozan lost by the slimmest margin in the history of the contest but he feels that the experience still gives him an edge over first time competitors Blake Griffin, Serge Ibaka, and JaVale McGee.

"I know what to expect and what I need to go out there and do. I know what the crowd is going to be looking for and I’m just going to try to entertain people," DeRozan said.

DeRozan knows that many people are expecting Griffin to win easily, but he plans on keeping it close.

"Everybody is going to say that. You can’t take anything away from him because he’s definitely been doing a lot of dunks this year that have led people to say that. But you know, I’m just going to go out there and try to have fun with it," he said.

Many have noted that Griffin will have homecourt advantage since All-Star weekend is taking place in Los Angeles. However, DeRozan believes he’s the one with the advantage after growing up in Compton and playing college ball at USC.

"Oh yeah, I think I definitely have homecourt advantage," DeRozan said. "It should be fun being able to go out there and know that all of my friends and family will be there."

After competing in last year’s contest, DeRozan now understands the importance of showmanship and will adjust his performance accordingly.  Though he wouldn’t go into details, DeRozan did say that he’ll be implementing more props into his routine this time around.

"When I go out there, I’m going to do better dunks and just make it more entertaining," he said. "I think you have to make it a show at the same time if you want to make it fun."

In January, the DeMar DeRozan show became a hit in Toronto. Next month, it will be coming to a television set near you.

Andersen Adjusting in New Orleans: David Andersen had only played eleven games as a member of the Toronto Raptors when he was traded to the New Orleans Hornets earlier this season.

As part of the deal that sent Jarrett Jack to New Orleans and Jerryd Bayless to Toronto, Andersen was sent back to the United States and was forced to adjust to another new situation on the fly. After joining the Raptors just several months earlier, Andersen couldn’t believe he had already been dealt.

"Yeah, it definitely surprised me. It was out of left field and when it all came about, I was really stunned. This is the business side of the sport and after I got thrown into the trade to balance things out, it definitely took me by surprise," Andersen told HOOPSWORLD.

Fortunately, the center’s transition has been relatively easy due to the excellent culture in New Orleans.

"It’s been pretty good," Andersen said. "We have a good bunch of guys; everyone is very friendly and gets along well. Everyone from the coaching staff to the players works really hard and so the adjustment has been easy. I think the organization is right on top of things. They do their best to make sure the players are comfortable, looked after, and having a good time. They’re making sure that everyone gets along and they really are building a new culture here. There’s a family atmosphere and we have everyone working together on the same page as we try to build, win games, and ultimately win a championship."

{AUTHOR_BOX}While Andersen is in a winning situation, his minutes have decreased drastically from his stints in Toronto and Houston.

"Unfortunately, the playing side has been a bit hard because we have a lot of bigs," Andersen said. "For me, the minutes have been very tough but they already had their system in place and they had been winning a lot of games before the trade. I’ve been around the block for awhile. I’ve only been in the NBA for two years, but I was in Europe for a really long time and won a lot of championships over there. Coming here, I suppose people just don’t really know me as a person or player so I’ve kind of had to prove myself all over again. Going forward, if I do get more of a chance, I feel that I can impress the coaches and contribute to the team, helping them in any way possible. The biggest thing for me is to be a contributor on the team and help teams win. At the end of the day, I just want to be in the mix and in there playing ball."

Andersen’s journey to the NBA has not only provided him with plenty of experience, but also the confidence that he can play with the best players in the world.

"It just gives you extra confidence and you have more of an understanding of what teams need to do to win," he said. "The NBA is a different machine because you have more talent and individuals that can contribute. But doing what I’ve done in Europe, winning championships while being a good team guy and understanding the game really well, definitely helps when you go to a new team. It was a good fit for me playing in Europe all of those years and like I said, I won many championships so it was a fun time for me. It did take me awhile to get to the NBA, but that was just due to different circumstances and the business side of the NBA. It took me awhile to get here, but hopefully I can be around for a few more years still."

After joining the Hornets in the midst of their sale to the NBA, Andersen has been impressed with how the entire organization has handled the potential distraction.

"It’s always a big distraction when you don’t know where the team may end up. That’s your place of work and you don’t know what’s going to happen. Speaking from experience, having to move is always hard and that’s a big thing. But credit goes to all of the guys for not really stopping to think about it too much. The team has done a good job of saying its business as usual and making sure everyone is focused on playing basketball as they try to get things sorted out to let the team stay in New Orleans," he said.

Instead, the team has focused on proving themselves in the Western Conference. The Hornets feel that they have been overlooked and that they’re still capable of beating any team put in front of them.

"It’s tough because we’re trying to make a name for ourselves, but all of the big teams already have a bit of a reputation. But we’ve knocked off some of the big teams along the way so it’s not like we haven’t proven ourselves. But saying that, we still have to earn our spot and we’re working hard every day to get as many wins as we can on the board. I think we’re doing a pretty good job of that and I feel like could really make some noise once the playoffs come around," Andersen said.

By then, Andersen will have had plenty of time to get comfortable and adjust to the new situation in New Orleans. With plenty of experience under his belt, Andersen has proven that he can be a significant contributor and rotation player when given the minutes. Now, he’s waiting for his opportunity in New Orleans, ready to prove himself all over again.

News and Notes: Here are some items from this week’s news and notes bin.

• The Toronto Raptors threw every big man on their roster at Dwight Howard on Friday night, but nobody was able to slow down the Orlando Magic center. Howard finished with 31 points and 19 rebounds despite sitting out the entire fourth quarter. "When the young fellas over there are scared of him, it’s easy to dominate them. You can see it in their faces. Most teams don’t want to face him one on one. They tried, and they got killed doing it," said Gilbert Arenas.

• Monta Ellis suffered a sprained left ankle in overtime during last night’s victory over Sacramento. His status for tonight’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers is still up in the air.

• The Raptors have dropped ten of their last thirteen games and their 112-72 loss to the Magic was their worst margin of defeat since 1996. "We’re playing bad," said Andrea Bargnani. "Every game it seems like we’re playing worse and worse. We have to try to find a way to stop this and play better."