Traveling to Madison Square Garden last night, Ja Morant crossed paths with a certain Derrick Rose, who is very important in the career of the Memphis phenomenon. The latter did not miss the opportunity to pay tribute to the former MVP who inspired him so much.
When we go back three years and look at Ja Morant’s pre-draft profile, we often find the name of Derrick Rose (among others) in the “NBA comparison” section. Ja indeed had – when he left Murray State University in 2019 – this label of hyper-athletic guard, capable of dunking on the heads of the biggest and of chaining prowess near the circle like prime Derrick with the Bulls.
That comparison to the former Chicago superstar has only grown since then, especially with Morant’s exploits last year when he started entering the MVP discussion. The huge tomars, the fantastic flights, the offensive cards, all that can only remind Derrick’s best years between 2009 and 2012. Like Rose at the time, Morant is a true highlights machine who brings a huge dose of excitement around every game his team plays, home and away. New proof this Sunday in the most prestigious of NBA halls, Madison Square Garden, where Ja regaled with a triple-double (27 points, 10 rebounds, 14 assists) in front of the public always very connoisseur of New York. Triple-double that Morant rightly dedicated to Derrick, one-night opponent and also a former resident of the University of Memphis.
Ja Morant on Derrick Rose: “He really made it to where people believe in guys like me. Coming in, athletic guards, I felt like he was pretty much the one who kind of made it more famous.“
Memphis legends. pic.twitter.com/zzccJF6oOI
— Damichael Cole (@DamichaelC) November 28, 2022
“It’s thanks to him that people believe in a guy like me. He is the one who made athletic guards more popular. With his acrobatic finishes, his touch around the circle, and the explosiveness he had. When I arrived in the NBA, I was compared to him. It’s crazy to be able to share the floor with him. »
This must please Derrick Rose.
If his bonus was far too short because of injuries and his career did not match his immense talent, it is clear that Derrick left a real mark in the NBA, especially for kids like Ja Morant who was watching with wide eyes in the early 2010s. D-Rose was ready to take his Bulls to the top, he was squarely ready to compete with LeBron James and Kobe Bryant to become the new face of the NBA, until his goddamn knees failed him mid-flight. That Derrick, he inspired Ja and so many other guards over the last decade. And perhaps there wouldn’t be a Grizzlies Morant franchise player today without the former Chicago superstar, who proved a franchise might be high-performing by building on a point guard with, above all, big athletic qualities.
That probably explains why Ja was so keen to give Derrick his shirt yesterday following the game, even though his dad Tee Morant wanted it too…
Ja Morant says he almost said no when his dad asked for his jersey from tonight’s game because he wanted to do a jersey swap with Derrick Rose. ???? He said he ended up giving Rose a different jersey instead pic.twitter.com/3jsJFDRSQ3
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) November 28, 2022
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Source texte : @memphisnews