The New York Knicks are thriving this season and Derrick Rose has played an integral role.
With the playoffs quickly approaching, the Knicks are currently the hottest team in the NBA. The team, currently fourth in the Eastern Conference, are 12-1 in their last 13 games. Their most recent win, Monday night at Memphis, clinched a regular season winning record for the first time since 2012-13.
Rose has excelled in a sixth man role for the Knicks. On Monday night, he came off the bench and dropped 25 points on 11 of 15 shooting from the field. And it was all within an efficient 27 minutes of game time for the former MVP.
The reality has set-in for fans that this team is indeed for real. An exciting nine-game win streak in April justified the excitement the fanbase is feeling.
And the timing couldn’t be any better. The city is beginning to take additional steps in their reopening plan. In recent weeks, the Garden has come alive with limited fan attendance. Can you imagine what that building will sound like in the playoffs?
The Knicks have it all going for them right now. Julius Randle is playing like a top-five candidate for MVP and he’s deserving of strong consideration for the Most Improved Player award. RJ Barrett continues to come of age. And then there’s Rose and what he’s meant to this team’s playoff push.
Since trading for Rose in early February , the Knicks are 21-8 in the 29 games he’s played with them. He is averaging 14.3 points in 26.3 minutes per game and distributing 4.1 assists.
Rose has been the spark off the bench, he’s also been the big brother on and off the court for a young team growing more confident with every win, yet still lacking in big-game experience.
The 32-year old won an MVP award 10 years ago. That was a different Derrick Rose. Big on talent and heart, short on experience. He’s not the same player he was then, he’s better. The heart is still the same, if not bigger. But he’s full of experience now.
This Derrick Rose is battle-tested
He’s also reunited with head coach Tom Thibodeau.
“He knows how hard I fought to get back,” Rose said. “He knows I’m a gym rat. He knows I’m a student of the game. He knows where my heart is at. And it’s vice versa. I know how much work he puts into this craft. I know how he preps before every game, and we’re seeing the results of it. He came here, he had a great young group. They’re playing tremendous throughout the entire year.
“Me coming here, trying to give them more confidence or let them be vocal and let them know what I see on the floor. It’s working. But Thibs is somebody I can trust to the end, and I know that it’s vice versa.”
Connecting with others and building relationships can do wonders for one’s professional and personal growth. When Rose won his MVP award a decade ago in Chicago, Thibodeau was his head coach. They reunited in Minnesota and now, again, here in New York. There’s trust between the two, a bond, and mutual respect.
The Knicks are thriving again. The Garden is buzzing again. And, ten years later, we’re talking about Rose and Thibs again.
Image: Tom Thibodeau and Derrick Rose – NBAE via Getty Images
Image: Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Tom Thibodeau – Gary Dineen/Getty Images
