Few players have had as spectacular a downfall as Derrick Rose. He’s gone from being the league MVP and one of the game’s brightest young talents to perhaps one of the most disappointing career trajectories in NBA history. He was hobbled by injuries in the prime of his career that robbed him of the otherworldly speed and explosiveness that was a hallmark of his game.
After a disappointing season in New York, Rose is searching for redemption and a return to form, and playing alongside LeBron James in Cleveland might just give him the chance to add a new chapter to his on-court narrative.
The Cavs’ new point guard has admitted that everything has taken a toll on him psychologically but that he’s approaching the coming season with a whole new mindset.
Via Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com:
“I was in a dark place years ago, man,” Rose said Saturday. “By a dark place, I mean, I was playing, like, revenge basketball, and that wasn’t my way of playing basketball.
“I enjoy competing, but when I came back it was about just trying to get back to the top and proving everybody wrong. Like, I know who I am as a man, I know who I am as a player or person. There’s no point in doing that anymore. It’s just being secure as a person and knowing who I am.”
With Isaiah Thomas rumored to be sidelined until the first of the year with a troubled hip, Rose should get plenty of opportunities to establish himself as a key member of the Cavs’ rotation. The real test, however, will come when he inevitably has to take a backseat to Thomas, who is replacing Kyrie Irving as the team’s No. 2 option on the floor.
(ESPN.com)
