I realize that Derrick Rose is excited about starting a new chapter of his basketball career with the New york Knicks, but he has to tone it down.
Apparently he’s lumping the Knicks in with the Warriors as the two “super teams” that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has spoken out against.
“With these teams right now, they’re saying us and Golden State are the super teams, and they’re trying not to build that many super teams,” said Rose.
Notice how he didn’t actually say himself that he believed the Knicks were on that level, but that other people have said so.
Derrick Rose says the Knicks are being put in the same 'super team' class as the Warriors. More here: https://t.co/is8sBHpBiY
— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) July 22, 2016
It’s plausible deniability at its finest. He can deny actually making that ridiculous claim himself, but still put the idea out there without attribution. He’s endorsing the claim by sharing it, because it’s not like he immediately laughed or discounted it in any way.
I’d like to meet these people who’ve told Rose that they consider the Knicks a super team. Confidence is important for an athlete, but comments like this cross the line into delusions of grandeur.
The Knicks won 32 games last year, and brought aboard Rose, Joakim Noah, and Brandon Jennings to join Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis next season in New York.
Rose must still be living in 2010. Had that trio arrived in New York 6 years ago, then he’d have a case to label this squad as a super team.
At this point, injuries have greatly diminished what Rose can bring on the court, though. Noah is not only out of his prime, but coming off a major shoulder injury. Jennings is a shoot-first point guard who’s not a good shooter, and never became the star that many people anticipated he would become in this league.
Porzingis had a great rookie season, and Anthony is still an elite scorer in the league, but to call the Knicks a super team is absurd.
Compare their situation with that of a legitimate super team. The Warriors had 3 players who made an All-NBA Team last year, which by theoretical definition gives them 3 of the top 15 players in the NBA. Not to mention they won an NBA record 73 regular season games and came just a minute away from back-to-back championships.
Kevin Durant is now being added to that trio, so that’s 4 players on one team that made an All-NBA Team last season. That’s a super team.
Rose is probably just trying to give Knicks fans something to be excited about, but not only does this come off as unhinged, but it runs the risk of unrealistically raising expectations to the point that Rose is going to end up looking ridiculous as early as 2 weeks into the season.
Then again, I’m sure even Knicks fans found Rose’s comparison to be preposterous. When the Warriors play the Knicks next season, Rose is in for a rude awakening.