New video shows Derrick Rose's tear-filled reaction to the Bulls trading him to the Knicks
It feels so long ago now, but Derrick Rose was the face of Chicago Bulls as recently as 2016. He wasn’t the team’s best player in the later years after repeated knee injuries drained him of explosiveness, but the former MVP and first overall pick was still the team’s marquee player.
As a native of Chiacgo’s South Side, it didn’t get any better for Rose than playing for his hometown. And then it ended with a phone call.
Watch Derrick Rose learn the Bulls traded him
With the release of its new documentary “Pooh: The Derrick Rose Story” on Thursday, Stadium revealed that it happened to have cameras on Rose the moment that he learned the Bulls had agreed on a trade that would send him to the New York Knicks. Rose was emotional to say the least.
The point guard is actually seen discussing rumors around a trade before receiving the call and reiterating that he’s happy in Chicago.
“You do hear about trade rumors here and there, and this last one, the Knicks one was pretty big because it caught a lot of people’s attention,” Rose said. “I’m good with being in Chicago. We’re trying to win there, get back on the right track, so that’s the only thing I can think about. Being in Chicago, but I do hear the rumors. I never really thought about packing up and leaving or demanding a trade.”
At that point, Rose is pulled away by a friend and mentions that his agent BJ Armstrong is in New York.
“I hope nothing happened,” Rose said. “Makes me kinda nervous.”
Rose resumes his interview with Stadium, then gets pulled away again to answer his phone. Armstrong tells him the trade is happening. Rose reacts with disbelief, then walks outside in tears while his agent explains to him everything that’s about to happen. It’s hard to watch at times:
EXCLUSIVE: Our cameras captured the emotional moment Derrick Rose learned his hometown #Bulls traded him to the #Knicks.#DRoseDoc pic.twitter.com/qCXvbKsoH7
— Stadium (@Stadium) April 12, 2019
Rose later returns to the interview, but clearly isn’t in a state to give complete answers to the producers. Rose would end up playing just one season in New York, where he averaged 18.0 points and 4.4 assists.
He has since bounced around as a bench player with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves, but he’s now hit free agency again.
Armstrong said in a radio interview Monday that he’s open to a return to Chicago.
"There's no secret, there's no doubt that in his heart, Chicago will always be there,” Armstrong said. “We'll see. I don't know what the Bulls are going to do at this particular time ... If it presented itself, we'd be open to that conversation. We'll find out in due time."
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