The New York Knicks had no idea where point guard Derrick Rose was Monday night, which is about as odd and scary as it sounds.
Rose showed up with the team at practice Tuesday, got slapped with a fine and had an awkward media session.
Daniel Popper of the New York Daily News captured some of the interview:
https://twitter.com/danielrpopper/status/818894239438434305
Al Iannazzone of Newsday summed up some of the major points:
Derrick Rose said he returned to Chicago because he needed to be with his mother.
— Al Iannazzone (@Al_Iannazzone) January 10, 2017
Rose said he didn't want to pick up the phone when Knicks called. He needed his "space."
— Al Iannazzone (@Al_Iannazzone) January 10, 2017
Again, the Knicks didn’t really have any idea what was going on and it only became clear after reports surfaced that is was a family situation.
“Everything will become clear later on. You know, we want to respect whatever he’s going through. We’re just not going to comment on it,” head coach Jeff Hornacek said, per ESPN.com.
Family situation or not, Adrian Wojnarowski noted not all is great between the Knicks and Rose:
Rose has been increasingly frustrated with how this Knicks season has unfolded, culminating with him privately fuming over his diminished late-game role in Friday night’s victory in Milwaukee, sources said. Knicks coach Jeff Hornacek played undrafted rookie Ron Baker over Rose in the fourth quarter.
As of now, the Rose-Knicks marriage doesn’t look so hot. Not only is the situation hurting the team’s chances at a playoff berth, Rose is hurting his odds of landing a big contract this offseason.
If it’s any consolation for Rose, his presence wouldn’t have helped at all Monday night—the Knicks took a 110-96 whipping at the hands of the 15-win New Orleans Pelicans as Carmelo Anthony and Kyle O’Quinn managed to get ejected.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
