Derrick Rose trade always had chance to be major Knicks boon
As the Knicks head to State Farm Arena to face its 16,000 fans, Rose and Gibson, Thibodeau’s top two playoff warriors dating to their days together in Chicago and Minnesota, are leading the charge.
Thibodeau started the duo to begin the second half Wednesday and the whole series changed with the Knicks rallying from a 13-point halftime deficit to knot the best-of-seven series at one game apiece. They’ve gained momentum if not home-court advantage.
It’s hard to imagine Thibodeau reverting to starting Elfrid Payton at point guard for Game 3 after Rose continued to blossom.
In the first two games of the playoffs, Rose has averaged 21.5 points while shooting 42.9 percent from 3. He’s also averaging 38 minutes — which is a concern at age 32 because of the fear of breaking down.
“I was one of the ones that were very critical when Derrick Rose got traded to the Knicks, and I’m not going to lie,’’ ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins said. “I was like, man, D-Rose got a lot left in the tank. We were talking about a guy last year that possibly could have snuck into the All-Star Game, how good he was playing. I was like, ‘D-Rose, why you not going to a contender?’ But then when he got to the Knicks and when he started balling out, all of a sudden it came back to me that his relationship with Thibodeau is different. It’s special.’’
Is it ever. Rose’s role keeps expanding and he keeps getting closer to his vintage level. He’s become the Knicks’ most indispensable player.
In their playoff debuts, Julius Randle and RJ Barrett are still finding their footing. Randle has scored 15 points in each game, shooting 28.2 percent. He started to look himself in the second half Wednesday but he’s got to put a full game together. Barrett, meanwhile, is shooting 37.9 percent in the series and wasn’t a factor in their comeback.
They need Rose more than ever to play like an All-Star, and he’s taking the task of battling Trae Young to heart.
“He’s amazing,’’ Randle said. “He got into the ball, made it uncomfortable for Trae to come back at the other end. It’s an adjustment for them, him coming off that pick-and-roll. He’s a highly skilled player, making plays. He’s a high IQ player making the game easy for all of us.’’
In his new state, Rose is a more savvy scorer. Last week on Instagram, he expressed frustration when it’s written he’s playing like his old self.
Rose knows he doesn’t have nearly the explosiveness he once did, but he’s crafty enough to still wiggle to the basket and has a lighter touch. He’s developed an accurate 3-point shot as opposed to when he refused to shoot them under former Kicks coach Jeff Hornacek. He’s scoring midrange pull-ups and floaters. He’s got a lot on his bag.
“I was just talking, something that’s been on my mind for a couple of years, but it’s something I felt like it was true,’’ Rose said of his Instagram rant. “I am a totally different player now. I did change my game, but I have to say that people have to defend me different.’’
Rose was on a minutes restriction in Detroit of 23-25 minutes. It wasn’t official, but the Pistons coaching staff noticed his effectiveness went down after he played 23 minutes. He averaged 22.8 minutes in Detroit this season.
With Thibodeau, Rose’s minutes keep rising with no production drop-off. In his last 15 regular-season games, Rose played 29 minutes a game, averaging 18.4 points. He’s played starter’s minutes for some time now.
“We really don’t view him as a second-unit guy,’’ Atlanta’s Kevin Huerter said. “For us, he’s 1B on their scouting report. We have to just force him into tough shots, tough pull-ups. He’s good when he gets in the paint and can elevate and get to his float game. We have to limit his transition touches.’’
Rose hasn’t become the Knicks’ leader (Randle is), but he’s getting close to that title.
“One thing about Derrick I’ve noticed, when he’s in a familiar situation that he’s comfortable in, he understands it’s family,’’ Gibson said. “He understands when it’s a good environment, a winning environment, he’s going to flourish. And right now he’s around familiar faces he’s been in battle with for a long time. It’s no coincidence how he’s been playing. His leadership role is on a whole ’nother level right now talking to the young guys.’’
Leader, mentor, scorer.
“Derrick Rose embracing it at the age that he is, towards the end of his career, it’s a beautiful thing to see,’’ Perkins said.
Derrick Rose
.jpg) Rose with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2019
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| No. 4 – New York Knicks | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | October 4, 1988 Chicago, Illinois |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Simeon Career Academy (Chicago, Illinois) |
| College | Memphis (2007–2008) |
| NBA draft | 2008 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall |
| Selected by the Chicago Bulls | |
| Playing career | 2008–present |
| Career history | |
| 2008–2016 | Chicago Bulls |
| 2016–2017 | New York Knicks |
| 2017–2018 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2018–2019 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2019–2021 | Detroit Pistons |
| 2021–present | New York Knicks |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Derrick Martell Rose (born October 4, 1988) is an American professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one year of college basketball for the Memphis Tigers before being drafted first overall by his hometown Chicago Bulls in the 2008 NBA draft.[1] He was named the NBA Rookie of the Year and also became the youngest player to win the NBA Most Valuable Player Award in 2011 at age 22.
Rose was born and raised in Chicago, and attended Simeon Career Academy. He was highly recruited by colleges, eventually choosing to join the University of Memphis under coach John Calipari. Rose led the Tigers to the most wins in NCAA history (a 38–2 record), their first number 1 ranking in 25 years, and an appearance in the NCAA championship game. In 2009, an NCAA investigation revealed that Rose’s SAT scores had been invalidated, and as a result, the NCAA vacated Memphis’ entire 2007–08 season.
Rose has struggled with significant knee injuries since his 2010–11 MVP campaign. In the first round of the 2012 NBA Playoffs against the Philadelphia 76ers, Rose tore his ACL in his left knee. Rose required surgery and was subsequently sidelined for the entire 2012–13 season. Rose returned to play in 2013–14, but during a regular season game against the Portland Trail Blazers on November 22, 2013, Rose injured his right meniscus which caused him to miss the remainder of the season. Rose returned once again the following season, but knee injuries continued to riddle him, causing him to miss 30 games. In June 2016, he was traded to the New York Knicks. After one season with the Knicks, Rose joined the Cleveland Cavaliers in July 2017, but was traded and subsequently released by the Utah Jazz the following February. In March 2018, he signed with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Knicks’ Derrick Rose and Tom Thibodeau have reconquered Madison Square Garden
Derrick Rose clapped his hands, almost rhythmically, as the Madison Square Garden faithful stood in approval, roaring and exhaling at once, finally able to bathe in their basketball cathedral.
As long as it’s been for the New York Knicks, it’s almost seemed like a longer wait for Rose to return to this stage and to have a moment that he can appreciate after so many winds, so many turns and so many questions.
The Knicks tying their first-round playoff series with the Atlanta Hawks was spurred on by Rose and Taj Gibson starting the second half, with Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau leaning on his old horses to get his team through more quarters of playoff nerves. You might as well call them the KnickerBulls.
“I’m fortunate, very fortunate,” Rose said.
Those words didn’t come in the aftermath of this 26-point performance, but to ESPN’s Lisa Salters in the aftermath of the last time he sent an arena into delirium — Game 3 of the 2015 playoffs when he gave his hometown Chicago Bulls a 2-1 lead of LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers with a banked triple that looked like a missile, on a mission to deliver one final playoff moment.
He showed more emotion with his handclap than he did on that Friday night in May, jumping into the arms of teammates with a nonplussed reaction, moments after Thibodeau clenched his fist in satisfaction.
Rose is older now, no longer the 26-year-old trying to negotiate his excellence against gravity and science, but the 32-year-old counted on for so much more than just a veteran presence to help steer a young group through its first playoff experience.
“I’m very fortunate to be in this position. Not only am I in the league, I’m on a great team,” Rose said.
That was in the aftermath of saving his team’s season Wednesday night, which could pale in comparison to reviving his career after all the knee surgeries and doubts about his ability to adapt and willingness to persevere.
But still grateful.
Helping keep Julius Randle’s head in it after a subpar six quarters and keeping his even-keel composure in the face of Atlanta possibly taking a 2-0 lead seemed like child’s play. Starting point guard Elfrid Payton was struggling, getting pulled sooner and sooner by Thibodeau in the first and third quarters, so the change seemed inevitable.
“We just felt we were flat and we needed a jolt of energy. So we wanted to change it up,” Thibodeau said. “And we got going. And it started with the defense.”
Thibodeau’s head coaching career can largely be defined by two terms: “Defense” and “Derrick Rose,” and he’s not delusional about either. He’s been among Rose’s biggest advocates during his brightest and bleakest hours, and also knows his own strengths sit in his teams playing harder than you, longer than you, largely on the back of defense.
But letting Rose be the best version of himself relies on Thibodeau giving Rose the freedom to make decisions, to trust his eyes and his voice in critical moments, whether he’s an MVP or sixth-man candidate.
“Both he and Taj have been in a number of playoff games so I think they understand that we have some guys that haven’t been in playoff games,” Thibodeau said. “There’s only one way to get experience in that you got to get it.”
As exhilarating as Madison Square Garden can be, it can also be intimidating even as a home team. All those years of disappointments, not being able to participate in a pretty fruitful era of basketball can make the air thick for the players wearing “Knicks” across their chest. Cheap chants at Trae Young are comical compared to the massive expectations placed on Julius Randle, winner of the 2020-21 Most Improved Player award.
He had only two points at the half and didn’t look comfortable. If Rose hadn’t come in to energize things, if Gibson hadn’t added his brand of toughness, the Knicks could be in a 2-0 hole.
But the disparate group found its way, turning the game on its head in the third quarter, and giving a thirsty crowd hope for its first playoff win since 2013. The comeback was familiar, and finding a way with unlikely sources was the usual story to the Knicks climbing to fourth in the East.
Reggie Bullock gave Young some issues defensively, and even though he still managed to score a game-high 30 points with seven assists, he didn’t have the control that he exerted in Game 1. It was just enough to pull away, even though the Hawks got the split they truly came to New York for.
Rose played 39 minutes, his highest output since a 40-minute outing in October 2018, when he scored a career-high 50 points against the Utah Jazz as a member of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
His coach that day? Tom Thibodeau.
Rose’s career had already taken so many turns by that point, and every season he returns for more almost feels like gravy.
“My appreciation is on an all-time high,” Rose said. “It’s a lot of guys my age that still feel like they can hoop. It’s a lot of guys younger than me that’s out the league and they want another opportunity.”
Rose put out an Instagram post recently, disputing the notion of being “vintage” considering how his game has changed. No longer an innocent high flyer, he’s got wounds and scars, both seen and unseen, yet he’s persevered to this point.
Gibson, though, bristled at Rose’s apparent humility and acceptance of no longer being able to hang with the elite.
“Y’all be letting him gas you,” he joked, an indication Rose’s success isn’t a surprise because of his quiet confidence.
In 2011, Rose and Thibodeau were the inexperienced ones, MVP and Coach of the Year, eliminated by the dynastic Miami Heat on this very day 10 years ago. In 2015, they were fighting against the tide — Thibodeau’s battle with Bulls management, Rose’s battle with his body — gamely giving James his toughest battle in the East playoffs and coming within a bounce or two of making an improbable run.
Now, as Thibodeau turns to Rose yet again, for more minutes than usual, more effort, more production, they’ve remade themselves on the fly, gearing up for one more run and maybe more to come.
“God doesn’t make any mistakes man, follow your path,” Gibson said. “You just got to believe in yourself. And truly believe, because this is some magical stuff right now.”
