OKLAHOMA CITY – Derrick Rose’s stats look lofty, but he admits to being disappointed in how he’s played in the pre-All-Star break portion of the season.
Entering the final game before the break, Wednesday in Oklahoma City, Rose reiterated he feels uncertain about his future because of his expiring contract and Thursday’s trade deadline approaching.
Rose has told confidants he is headed to Los Angeles for the pause in the season, privately happy he didn’t get the nod so he can unwind.
If the Knicks stand pat, Rose says, the playoffs are “reachable.’’ Then anything can happen, the Knicks point guard says. The Knicks are three games out of the eighth seed despite a 23-33 record.
Rose, a free agent this summer who is eligible for an in-season contract extension, is averaging 17.6 points, 4.4 assists and 3.9 rebounds.
But as much as he’s been critiqued for defensive gaffes, he revealed he’s most let down by his timing and turnovers. Rose is averaging 2.5 turnovers per game — actually down from his career 2.9 mark. Nonetheless, Rose blamed being disjointed, in part, on all those past injuries costing him all those games, along with a new offense light on pick-and-rolls.
“I really don’t care about my stats — as long as I’m on a winning team,’’ Rose said. “That’s all I care about.”
Asked what he’s been disappointed in despite his solid statistics, Rose said: “Turnovers. I hate the way I’m turning the ball over this year. Everything else is pretty solid. I missed 3 ½ years of working the game, I’m playing catch-up. Every day I get a chance to play or to hoop is kind of catching myself up to the group. Look at all the other players in the league playing great basketball, I’m just trying to play catch-up to everyone.”
Though the Knicks don’t run a full-blown triangle, they often come downcourt in triangle spacing – completely different from his Bulls stint.
“It’s the timing,’’ Rose said. “Most of them come in pick-and-roll situations, and that comes with the offense. I was used to playing heavy dose of pick-and-rolls offensively for seven years. And being here and having it once every four, five times down the floor, you have to get accustomed to it and used to it and find a way not to turn it over.’’
With president Phil Jackson’s vision of a rebuild dancing in and out of his head and Carmelo Anthony’s no-trade clause making it difficult to open the search, Rose could be a logical candidate as a rental, though his $21 million pact makes it difficult.
“I haven’t talked to anyone yet,’’ Rose said. “This business with this league you never know. Who knows? I really don’t know what could happen in the next week, next day. I haven’t talked to [my agent]. I just let it happen. I don’t want to talk anything into existence and put things into the universe. I like being here, but you never know what could happen and future they have for this team or decisions they have to make to build a winning team.”
But Rose thinks it would be disappointing if management gave up on the season to make a deadline move for the future, especially after the San Antonio stunner.
“You never know what could happen in the playoffs, and we have a good chance [to make it],’’ Rose said. “I played on a Bulls team where it took us to Game 82 to get to the playoffs, and I think we played against Boston that year. And you never know what can happen. Things can click and you never know. An example like, when the Mavericks won that one year [2011], nobody expected them to win, but they got it done so examples like that, that’s what I think about.’’
First, the Knicks have to get there and play the type of disciplined defense they showed in holding San Antonio to 90 points Sunday.
“It’s reachable, it’s reachable,’’ Rose said. “We come back and we have 24, 25 games, something like that. And we still have a lot of time to figure that out.”
Asked if this club needs the break, Rose broke out into a wide grin.
“Yeah – to get our minds right, to figure out what we’re trying to do.’’
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