Earlier this week the Knicks traded Dennis Smith Jr. and a 2021 second round draft pick to Detroit for the 2010-11 MVP, Derrick Rose. This is Rose’s third stint with new Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau, and Rose’s second stint with New York. The Knicks tried to acquire Rose from the Pistons prior to the start of the season, but weren’t able to work anything out. According to Knicks beat reporter Ian Begley of SNY, Rose told Pistons’ head coach Dwayne Casey, “Coach, I’ve only got so many miles left in my legs. I want to make sure I go to a situation where I may have a chance to make the playoffs this year.”
This not only speaks volumes about where Rose is at this point in his playing career, but it also says a lot about where the Knicks are as an organization. Rose will probably retire after the season, and due to his strong relationship with Tom Thibodeau, one would assume that he’d eventually join the Knicks on their coaching staff. What’s most intriguing about what Rose said though, is what most NBA players are seeing this year… The Knicks are back and need to be taken seriously. The Knicks are currently 11-15 and are 9th in the Eastern Conference standings. With a tight race as is in the conference, the Knicks have a legitimate chance to be an 8th seed this year.
Thibodeau has really taken this team under his wing and has done a stellar job thus far with the Knicks. He finds ways for this team to win, and when they don’t win, the team is close in the game until the final buzzer. Rookie point guard Immanuel Quickley is shooting 40% from the field with 12 PTs per game, and has nailed 34 three-point shots in 22 games off the bench this year. RJ Barrett has really improved this year as well. He’s shooting better, and his defensive game has made strides. Then there’s Julius Randle, the former 7th overall pick in 2014 by the Lakers, who’s had a very under appreciated career. Randle is on pace to have the best year fo his career as he’s averaging a career high in points, rebounds, and assists, while also having a 7% uptick from his career high free throw percentage. Shooting 80% from the line is pretty impressive for someone of his size.
What I’m trying to get at here, is that the Knicks have drastically improved under Coach Thibs. Bringing in Derrick Rose will only help in their goal of making this playoffs. Rose has even said that he knows he won’t play as much given the fact that the Knicks have 2-3 guards who deserve more minutes than him. But he also said that he’s fully embracing the mentor role, and has worked with Barrett, Quickley and fellow rookie Obi Toppin who was drafted 8th overall this year, whose been battling an injury since before the season started. By Monday night, Rose was having dinner with Quickley, already imparting his wisdom upon the up-and-coming, dare I say, star?
While I can guarantee you that we won’t see the Derrick Rose player of his Chicago Bulls days, maybe we will see that production as a mentor who help grow this team to greatness in the long run. Rose is highly respected across the game, and young guys like Barrett, Toppin and Quickley must’ve been excited to see Rose join the squad. That excitement alone will motivate this team, and we saw it this week against the Miami Heat where the team lost 98-96 against the reigning Eastern Conference champions. Watching the game seemed like I was watching Patrick Ewing’s Knicks vs Alonzo Mourning’s Heat of the 90s; which is something I have never seen as the team has essentially been a laughing stalk since Ewing and Jeff Van Gundy left in the early 2000s. So seeing the Knicks play really well against a team like the Heat, was beautiful to see for once.
Rose in the past has been seen as a mentor, whether it was with the Timberwolves, or most recently, the Pistons. But it seems like Rose has fully embraced the role this time around, and is wiling to do whatever it takes to help this team. I really like what Rose has done, and what he’s been saying is really impressive. Time will tell if this’ll work out, but I have a feeling that we haven’t seen the last of Derrick Rose in the playoffs just yet.