Since the KnicksacquiredDerrick Rose from the Chicago Bulls this past June, New Yorkers have been wildly optimistic about having the three-time NBA All-Star on the roster for next season. Forget the fact that the 27-year-old missed time because of one injury or another in each of the last four seasons, Knicks fans know that D-Rose at 70 percent is a vast improvement over the last two years with point guard Jose Calderon.
With that being said, Knicks fans have never been shy about expressing their feelings towards one of their players. At this moment, from a strictly on-the-court perspective, New Yorkers love Rose, and will show him that admiration every chance they get. And the gestures haven't been lost on D-Rose.
Per Jared Zwerling of the NBPA:
Rose had never envisioned playing anywhere but Chicago. He also didn’t have any family there. When it came to the Knicks, he only thought of them as the nemesis in their longtime rivalry with the Bulls. But he felt awakened by New York the day before his introductory press conference on June 24. The fans captured his attention, from walking on the street (“Yo, D-Rose, we can go to the playoffs,” a passerby said) to Philippe for dinner to ending the night at 1Oak nightclub (“Welcome the newest member of the Knicks, Derrick Rose,” the DJ shouted over the mic).
How does this reception from New Yorkers over the last couple months compare to the love he received from Chicago over his entire seven-year NBA career? It doesn't come close.
“I was feeling a lot of love,” Rose said. “You feel that a little bit in Chicago, but it’s not on that level of New York, so it kind of makes you anxious to actually get on the court. It’s, like, ‘Man, they’re excited that I’m actually there.’ I haven’t even picked up a ball yet, I haven’t made a basket yet, and I can only imagine how they’re going to act when we start winning.
Just wait until that first brutal performance in a Knicks jersey, D-Rose. Just wait.
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