The New York Knicks were victorious over the Atlanta Hawks 101-92 on Wednesday, their first playoff win in more than eight years. It has also been more than eight years since Knicks guard Derrick Rose has been named an All-Star, but that hasn't stopped him from playing like one – especially in Game 2, when he had a team-high 26 points off the bench and led the Knicks in assists while committing just one turnover.
"Last game we felt like we weren't in tune the way we were supposed to," Rose said after the win. "Personally, I felt that way. Coming in I wanted to play with intensity and just try to play as hard as I could and follow my teammates' footsteps."
Rose certainly did just that, as he outscored the Knicks starting backcourt 26-14 by himself. He was perfect from the charity stripe and made 67 percent of his threes, but that isn't where he did his most damage: 86 percent of his shots were from two, which embodies the type of attack mentality and getting into the lane intensity that Rose clearly displayed.
"I prepped myself for this," Rose said. "I've been working my butt off for a couple of years, just prepping myself and getting my body right."
That dedication certainly paid off in a virtuoso type performance by the 13-year veteran. Rose joins teammate Alec Burks as the only two players off the bench this postseason to finish with at least 26 points – and in the last 30 years there are just two other reserves who played in the postseason in year 13 or later and scored at least 26 points, and their names are Dwyane Wade and Kevin McHale, two first-ballot Hall of Famers with six championships between them.
Julius Randle has been the Knicks' best player all season and is the biggest reason why the Knicks are in the postseason, but so far, he's looked like a much different player – and not for the better. In the regular season Randle averaged over 24 points per game on 46 percent shooting from the field, but in two games this postseason he has 30 points total and is shooting just 28 percent from the floor.
How can a player of Randle's caliber be playing THIS poorly? Is it Nate McMillan's tactics on defense, Randle just having two off nights, the nerves of Randle in his first two career NBA playoff games…or all of the above? It's likely the latter, but right now, Rose has stepped up to show his prior MVP form and catapult the Knicks.
It's extremely rare when your star player's game has fallen off so much in a postseason series, yet you still find yourself on the positive end of the point differential. The Knicks could be up 2-0 right now, but after Trae Young's brilliant last-second floater won Game 1 for Atlanta, and the 'Bockers trailed by 13 at the half in Game 2, New York rebounded very nicely to take a big series-tying win.
A second half for the ages, which saw the Knicks outscore Atlanta by 22, was special, as is the second half of the career of Derrick Rose to this point. Knicks fans can't wait to see it continue, because while this isn't vintage Derrick Rose anymore, this is Derrick Rose 2.0.
And so far, Derrick Rose 2.0 has been just what the Knicks' doctor ordered.
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