The speculation about Derrick Rose‘s future with the New York Knicks just won’t stop. His agent piled on in a candid radio interview.
Derrick Rose’s agent, B.J. Armstrong, gave an interview to Sirius XM NBA’s “The Starting Lineup” about his client’s potential future with the New York Knicks.
Per Ian Begley of ESPN New York, Armstrong said there was a “good possibility” his client would return to New York in 2017 and had plenty more to say about Rose’s feelings on the franchise.
“I think this has been a great fit for him,” Armstrong said in an interview with Sirius XM NBA’s “The Starting Lineup” on Monday. “I think he looked at it from the moment [the trade] happened as an opportunity. He was very thankful. I know we were very thankful for playing in a great sports town like Chicago. But this part of his life — he sees this as the right place for him to be at the right time and the right moment.
Armstrong, a member of Phil Jackson’s Chicago Bulls, spoke about how beneficial playing with Kristaps Porzingis and Carmelo Anthony has been for Rose. He also elaborated on Rose’s already well-known love for New York.
“So playing with a young kid like [Kristaps Porzingis] and Carmelo [Anthony]and all of the players and things they’ve done there, so many new faces, I think this just presents a challenge for him that he’s really embraced and I can’t find a better place to do it every night than Madison Square Garden.”
“If you can’t find a way to get fired up to do it there in New York, you won’t find it. So he loves it there. I think there’s a good possibility [of remaining in New York long-term], and hopefully as he continues to just build on what he’s been able to do thus far and just take it one game at a time and let’s just see how it plays out at the end of the season.”
This craziness all started after Rose told SLAM Magazine that he wanted to “play the rest of [his] life” in New York.
Rose and his agent have made it clear they would love an extension. The Knicks can’t offer their point guard a re-up until Dec. 22, with the deadline being June 30.
The chances of the Knicks signing Rose long-term with his injury history are unlikely. He’s eligible for a three-year, $75 million contract and will likely hold out for that.
As Armstrong says, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.
“It’s not something that we’re concerned about at the moment right now. We just want to look at every game, get through the season and see how good we can really be. I really like this Knicks team. I think they’re poised to make a run here. So all that stuff will take care of itself. And we just want to focus in on the game and not let anything be a distraction to what we’re actually trying to do.”
Right now Rose is worried about the Miami Heat. The Knicks visit Miami Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. ET.
