NBA veteran Derrick Rose returned to the New York Knicks last season for his second stint with the team. The last time he played for the Knicks, Rose was still recovering from his horrific injuries and giving his best to return to stardom. Now that things have changed, the former NBA MVP has realized his role and has settled in as a solid supporting player.
Apart from providing support on the court and being a veteran, Rose has the task of becoming a leader in the locker room as well. After all, he seems to love the Knicks and Madison Square Garden as he recently got engaged there.
The 33-year-old dished out some advice for young Knicks players who are playing under coach Tom Thibodeau.
“At halftime, right before he walked in, I was telling the young guys Do not look over to the sideline. If you look at him, it’s going to f**k up your game. …When I was younger, I used to look over to the sideline a lot and you feel his emotions, and it’s kinda strange but after a while, I just raise my hand and put my head down. But even then he’s a winner. So you can express yourself how you want to like as a man you could be vocal. You could yell, but right after that you got to get right back on track to understand like the goal is to win a game.”
He continued, “He has amnesia. I’ve seen him go at it with a lot of players during the game and I had to mediate that. And, there were no hard feelings. He’s great at it. He respected that way.”
Derrick Rose's advice to the young Knicks' players before Tom Thibodeau came into tonight's halftime huddle in the locker room?
"If you look at him, it's going to f*** up your game" 🤣 pic.twitter.com/ybwz2vB4ED
— Knicks Videos (@sny_knicks) October 14, 2021
During his glory days, Rose spent six seasons under coach Thibs. He must have learned a lot from him and improved his game accordingly. Despite coming off a bit harsh at times, coach Thibs is great at what he is doing and his advice will certainly help the Knicks’ young players improve.
With a core of Julius Randle and RJ Barrett, the Knicks have a bright future ahead of them. And for once in a long time, the franchise has created a strong team to compete in the league and they should at least make it to the postseason this year.
