ORLANDO, Fla. — Derrick Rose hasn’t played in a game for the Knicks since the calendar flipped to 2023, with his last appearance coming on New Year’s Eve in Houston.
With the trade deadline looming on Thursday, Knicks coach and longtime Rose collaborator Tom Thibodeau was asked Tuesday if he’d like to see the 34-year-old Rose remain in his mentoring role for the team’s young players or be given a chance for playing time elsewhere.
“He’s been great. In whatever role you ask Derrick to play, he embraces it. He’s always been a team-first guy. So I know he’s always ready,” Thibodeau said before the Knicks faced the Magic at Amway Center. “He contributes in a lot of different ways to our club.
“As far as the trade stuff, there’s a million trades that get talked about and very rarely does anything get done. So I always want him to be around.”
Rose began his 15th year in the NBA with high expectations after last season was cut short by multiple ankle surgeries, but he was removed from the rotation in November — along with Cam Reddish and Evan Fournier — so Thibodeau could expand the roles of young guards Quentin Grimes, Immanuel Quickley and Miles McBride.
“I think for any veteran, it’s not easy to accept,” Thibodeau said. “And I think you always have to sacrifice and put the team first. And he’s always done that, whether he’s been an MVP or he’s been a guy that has come off the bench.
“He’s dealt with just about everything he could deal with in this league, and I think he has a great perspective on the league and so he’ll contribute in a positive way, in any way that he can and he’s done that.”
Rose had missed significant time early in his career alongside Thibodeau with the Bulls due to knee injuries.
With only a club option worth $15.6 million for 2023-24 remaining on his contract beyond this season, Rose could be used as a trade chip ahead of Thursday’s deadline. He never has won a championship during an injury-plagued 15-year NBA career.
“I just want to be happy playing basketball,” Rose said earlier this season. “Of course if I could get one, that would be great. But I always felt like me being on the court in Year 15, that is kind of like a championship for me.”
Rose, who intermittently returned to Thibodeau’s rotation when injuries arose in December, is averaging just 5.8 points in 12.9 minutes per game — both career lows — over 26 appearances this season. Barring a surprise return, Tuesday’s game would have been the 19th in a row he didn’t get off the bench.
“Just got to stay ready, find a way to stay ready,” Rose added earlier this season. “It’s like everything, forcing me to evolve into who knows, what knows? But I always take it as a challenge where I’ve just got to find a way to stay ready.”