The Toronto Raptors are always counting on DeMar DeRozan to give them more. In addition to being the team's top scorer, the organization is also leaning on DeRozan to become a better playmaker, and to provide a veteran voice for their young and inexperienced roster.

theScore caught up with DeRozan before the season during a promotional shoot for Foot Locker Canada's "Original Basketball" campaign. He spoke about his approach for his ninth year in Toronto and shared some thoughts on how his legacy in Canada will compare to that of Raptors icon Vince Carter when it's all said and done.

William Lou: You're beloved by Raptors fans for many reasons, but one of the main reasons is that you show dedication to your craft and come back with something new each season. What did you work on this summer?

DeMar DeRozan: I've never been one to be big on talking a lot when it comes to that, I always let my actions speak for itself. Every time the season rolls around I exploit everything that I been working on … from there on out it's on the fans to figure out.

Lou: Raptors head coach Dwane Casey said repeatedly over the summer that he wants to expand your role as a playmaker. How do you balance those duties while staying aggressive?

DeRozan: A lot of people always blow certain things out of proportion. I've done it a lot, and I had to do it a lot last year especially when Kyle (Lowry) was out. I'm scoring, but at the same time, once I get going, getting my teammates involved, just being more conscious of that from the start to the end of games throughout the season.

Lou: The Raptors seem to be pivoting to a 3-point-heavy offense. How does your midrange game fit within that style? Does your team have the types of shooters to execute effectively?

DeRozan: A lot of guys have been working on it extremely hard, trying to get the basis and the rhythm down of the offense and understanding where the shots come from.

As for me, you kind of understand where and how you want to get your shot. It's not really an issue for me, it's more so putting it all together on a team aspect. It's on me to get guys easier shots, me to draw the defense in so guys can get open shots. Me, at the end of the day, I know I can get my shot off, and get to my spots, and get to the basket kind of at will. But at the same time, using the defense to my advantage and getting guys open shots.

Lou: You took exception for a second straight season to some of the annual NBA player rankings. Do you feel like these evaluators are looking for a specific style of player more than just what each specific player contributes?

DeRozan: Yeah. And at the same time I have no clue what they look at or how they look at it. At this point, it holds no weight ... you don't even get bothered by it at the end of the day. Take, for example, Carmelo Anthony (ranked 64th by ESPN) - he's a hands-down Hall of Famer, the things he's done for this game is great, since 2003. It's crazy when it comes to the disrespect. However they rank it, it makes no sense to me, but you use it as motivation.

Lou: With the Raptors pushing forward with a youth movement, what's your responsibility to the team as a young veteran?

DeRozan: Everything, at this point. I've seen the bright sides of the success that the league brings, made it to multiple playoff series, being an All-Star. The experience that I've gained over my years is definitely something I can share with the young guys ... and try to show them the right way of approaching the game.

Lou: It's weird to speak of you as a veteran since it wasn't long ago that you, Amir Johnson, Sonny Weems, and Ed Davis were considered the "Young Guns." Do you feel like this new generation of young Raptors has the same camaraderie as you guys did?

DeRozan: Yeah. We kinda came up together, that whole group. Everything was new for us. We only had each other. Now it's kind of different. A lot of guys come from different backgrounds, different teams, different situations, so everything's kind of new. We're trying to bring that in and build that throughout training camp and preseason so we can be ready for the season.

Lou: Moving on to some Raptors history, do you ever feel like Canadian basketball fans are still waiting on the next Vince Carter to save them, and how do you fit into that?

DeRozan: Yeah, I mean I've never really looked at it like that. Vince definitely put the whole city and the country on the map, so from here on everything that happens is definitely a product of Vince Carter. It's going to be hard to ever top what Vince did because he's the one that started it. It's hard to break a first impression. So, it's on a guy like me, learning from Chris Bosh, who learned from Vince, to keep it going and keep it building.

Lou: Do you think you, Kyle Lowry, and the other pieces of this "We the North" era will impact this next generation of Raptors fans similar to how Vince did in the early-2000s?

DeRozan: I hope so. I'm pretty sure in the moment you don't look at it like you would 10 years from now. I'm pretty sure Vince did the same thing. I know even Vince would tell you today that sometimes he wishes he never left because in the moment you don't really realize what you have until later down the line. Hopefully, it is something that we've been able to pave the way. We had arguably the best Raptors team a couple of years ago, we went to the Eastern Conference finals, so you never know.