The NY Knicks find themselves in a flexible spot ahead of the trade deadline. The team is in the middle of the playoff of the picture, currently sitting 5th in the Eastern Conference. In the coming weeks, they could decide to either make a big trade stand pat. The team has draft picks, cap space, and a winning roster – It’s a great spot to be in.
Head coach Tom Thibodeau has established an identity with this Knicks’ team composed of hard-nosed defense, winning battles in the trenches, and a slow, grind-it-out offense. While the Knicks have been successful in their approach this season, their lack of offense has cost them a few games, and the team decided to make a trade for a legendary scoring guard, Derrick Rose.
The trade for Rose came on February 7th, when the Knicks were 11-14 and 8th in the Eastern Conference. Rose instantly made an impact with his new team, and they’ve gone 7-4 since his arrival. Perhaps the Knicks’ ties to other players around the league are just smoke and mirrors?
There’s never a trade deadline where names aren’t popping up left and right – It’s just the nature of the league. The Knicks aren’t exactly aiming for an NBA championship this year, so making two trades where they give up future assets for established veterans would be a little unusual.
Derrick Rose and coach Thibodeau have a long history together – Rose’s transition into the Knicks’ lineup has been smooth. For the most part, Rose has given the NY Knicks what they’ve needed to at least compete for those 4-6 spots in the Eastern Conference. Let’s look at what Rose has brought to the Knicks and if his influence bodes well for the 2nd half of the season.
NY Knicks: Derrick Rose has provided a scoring punch
When the Knicks traded for Rose, they were looking for someone to provide the team with more offensive firepower in the backcourt. They wanted someone with speed who could create instant offense for both himself and his teammates. So far, Rose has accomplished those goals.
Derrick Rose has had some pretty great shooting splits for the Knicks thus far. He’s shot just over 43% from the field, 45% from 3, and 87% from the free-throw line. The 3-point shooting will obviously come back down to earth, but you’ve got to be happy with the numbers so far.
I think many expected Rose to be the starting point guard when he first joined the team, but so far he’s been playing 24.6 minutes off of the bench. It’s worked out well. The combination of Rose and Immanuel Quickley gives the Knicks a ton of speed and scoring with their 2nd unit – It’s hard for opposing benches to keep up with them.
Rose’s impact on the court has shown up in a lot of different metrics, the most glaring one simply being his on/off stats with the team. When Derrick Rose is on the court, the team’s efficiency differential is +12.1. This is both a defensive and offensive stat. From Cleaning The Glass, efficiency differential is calculated from “Team points scored per 100 possessions minus team points allowed per 100 possessions.” Rose’s +12.1 rating (Small sample) ranks 3rd among point guards in the NBA, behind only Stephen Curry and Trae Young, and right above Ben Simmons and Damian Lillard – The entire leaderboard is elite players.
You can see just how rejuvenated the NY Knicks’ offense looks when he’s on the court. Even though Rose has been thriving in his 6th-man-type role with the team, you have to wonder: Will his recent play will garner him even more playing time in the future?
NY Knicks: Has Derrick Rose earned a bigger role?
The Knicks’ starting point guard job has fueled a lot of debate this season. The team has experimented with a wide variety of guard combinations. While Derrick Rose looks comfortable in his bench role, you have to at least ponder what the team would look like if he became the starter.
While some fans may be clamoring for Immanuel Quickley to get the starting job, it’s been Rose who has filled in tremendously when Elfrid Payton has gone down with an injury. Elfrid Payton recently missed 4 games with his injury and Derrick Rose got the start in 3 of them (Rose missed 2 games due to COVID protocols).
In those 3 starts, the Knicks played the Kings, Pacers, and Pistons, and Rose averaged 16.3 points on 52.7% from the field to go with 7.3 assists. The team won all three games, and Rose finished as a +4, +11, and +17. The ball was moving rapidly throughout those games, and Rose was a big part of it.
So the question remains – Is Derrick Rose going to take on a larger role in the 2nd half of the season?
I think the answer is yes… and no. No matter how you slice it, Thibodeau loves Elfrid Payton as the team’s starter, and I think it’s going to remain that way. Payton may hamper the team’s pace, but he brings a rugged style of defense and leadership that Thibodeau likes to lean on, especially for setting the tone early in games. The contrast of the starters and 2nd unit has worked well for the Knicks, but just because Rose isn’t starting doesn’t mean he can’t eat into Payton’s minutes.
I think the team will realize that Rose’s impact is a net-positive, and late in games when the team needs offense they’ll lean on him as opposed to Payton. We could definitely see Derrick Rose’s minutes go up in the 2nd half of the year. Rose’s ability to quickly generate buckets is invaluable for a team that will have long stretches of inept offense. Is it enough to keep the Knicks high up in the standings?
Can the NY Knicks and Rose stay afloat in the East?
There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the NY Knicks are a strong team that has completely exceeded their preseason expectations. This team has looked competitive all year, and they’ve come with some big wins at key points in the season. That being said, they’ve certainly beaten up on some weaker competition lately.
Let’s just be brutally honest about the Knicks’ recent opponents – The team’s last 5 wins came against the Minnesota Timberwolves, a nosediving Kings team, a Pacers team that was missing Malcolm Brogdon, The Detroit Pistons, and The Detroit Pistons without their best player, Jerami Grant. These are still NBA teams, and no matter who your opponent is, you still have to go out and get the win – The Knicks did exactly that, but it’s about to get a lot tougher.
In the month of March alone the Knicks will have to play the #1 team in the East, the Philadelphia 76ers, twice. They’ll play the #2 Brooklyn Nets once, and the #3 Milwaukee Bucks twice. These are going to be huge tests for the NY Knicks in what could turn out to be a first-round playoff matchup down the line.
For the NY Knicks, the criticism all-season long has been about the offense. The Knicks’ defense has been magnificent and is consistently in the top-3 in defensive rating, but their offense is still just 23rd in offensive rating.
Derrick Rose has certainly had a positive impact on the offense and the team overall. There was no world where he was going to simply flip this team into an offensive juggernaut – Really, is there any player that would “Transform” the offense that wouldn’t demand a Kings’ ransom in a trade?
Derrick Rose has proved to be a dynamic guard who has not only stood out in the box score but has provided mentorship for the Knicks’ younger players. He’s a leader on this team, and Knicks fans can’t be too disappointed if he ends up being the only midseason in 2021.