The Knicks got “one of the elite players in this league’’ for Dennis Smith Jr. That’s at least the take of Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau, who has a blind spot for Derrick Rose.
Thibodeau said Rose will “initially’’ come off the bench and is happy to hear his favorite player tell him the great shape he is in.
Using the word “initially’’ could mean Elfrid Payton, the Knicks’ starting point guard, should be on alert if his play does not stay up to standards.
Thibodeau has raved about Payton’s defense, but now he’s got one of his favorite players of all time on his side in Rose. Thibodeau has coached Rose in Chicago, Minnesota and now New York.
“It’s obviously someone I’m familiar with,’’ Thibodeau said before Tuesday’s game in Miami. “We’ve been through a lot of things together. But the biggest part is what I felt he could contribute to our team. I’ve always been partial to good players. If someone is a good player I’m interested. And I think he’ll add a lot to our team. I know his character. I know the type of teammate he is.
“He’ll accept any role. You can start him, you can bring him off the bench, You can play him short minutes, long minutes. He’s telling me this is as healthy as he’s been.’’
Asked about Rose’s role, Thibodeau said, “We’ll take a look at it. Initially, he’ll probably start coming off the bench. I like the way both groups have played. And we’ve been relatively healthy up to this point. So you always have to be prepared. But my job is to make sure the guys who aren’t in the rotation right now are staying ready.’’
A Pistons source said Rose’s production dropped off after 25 or so minutes and they kept him on an unofficial minutes restriction. But Thibodeau has always had a soft spot, despite the knee surgeries, for Rose, who won the league’s MVP award in Chicago 10 years ago when he was 22 and Thibodeau was his head coach.
Thibodeau declined to say he urged management to trade for Rose, who suited up Tuesday. Knicks president Leon Rose, who hasn’t spoken publicly since late July, was not made available for comment to talk about the trade.
“I think that’s part of management’s responsibility to the team,’’ Thibodeau said. “I think Leon and Wes [William Wesley, senior vice president] and Scott [Perry], they’re in constant communication with all the teams in the league, which, that’s all part of this business. You talk about a number of possibilities, you look at it, the pros and cons, what it could add, but there’s a number of players that were discussed. I don’t really focus on that. My focus is on the guys that we have here. If they feel something is good for the team, then obviously whoever they decide we’re going to have that’s who I’m going with.’’
The conundrum is possibility that the 32-year-old Rose could steal minutes from rookie point guard Immanuel Quickley, a fan favorite.
Thibodeau said Rose’s mentorship is key.
“In terms of a mentoring part, I think it’s critical,’’ Thibodeau said. “You’re talking about a guy who — he’s still one of the elite payers in the league in terms of, you look at what he’s done and accomplished, then the fact that he’s been a great teammate.
“When you look at how players develop, I mentioned this the other day about the impact Luol Deng had on Jimmy Butler, when you have the right veterans around young guys, I think that’s critical. Them helping to teach young guys to be pros and to learn the tricks of the trade and professionalism, I think [Quickley] can’t help but learn.’’
Rose hadn’t played in February as he took time off for “personal reasons.’’ He wasn’t able to participate in shootaround because Smith’s physical was not completed.
Figuring out who matches well with Rose in the backcourt is a challenge.
“The fact that he’s a good player, that’s the most important thing,’’ Thibodeau said. “He’s versatile. He can play on the ball, he can play off the ball — as can a number of our players. I think that’s one of the things that I do like about Quick, I like that about Alec Burks. The versatility; they can play when they handle the ball and they can play when they’re off the ball. Having those guys that are interchangeable.’’
The Heat were reportedly interested in Rose, so Miami coach Erik Spoelstra feels the Knicks got a good one.
“That partnership between him and Thibs has had a lot of success,’’ said Spoelstra, who saw Rose score 23 points in a Pistons win over Miami on Jan. 16. “They’re confident in that with a new leadership, it helps to have familiar faces to understand culture and what they’re trying to drive. Derrick is a heck of a player. When he’s healthy he really moves the needle as we saw when we played them a couple of weeks ago.”
