"Next chapter is about chasing my dreams": Derrick Rose opens up on calling time after 16-year NBA career
In mid-April, after the Memphis Grizzlies’ 126-111 loss to the Denver Nuggets, Derrick Rose told reporters that he would be “coming back.” The former MVP signed a contract with the Grizzlies in the summer of 2023, so he still had a final year on that deal. Unknown to everyone, potentially even to “D-Rose” himself, that would turn out to be his last season in the NBA.
Rose reportedly asked the Grizzlies this summer to free him from the final year of his contract, a request the team granted. On Monday, news came out that Memphis waived the 2009 Rookie of the Year winner. Many already speculated that Rose’s return might never happen.
On Wednesday, Shams Charania reported that Derrick Rose has retired from basketball. In an interview with The Athletic, Rose had this to say about hanging up his jersey:
“The next chapter is about chasing my dreams and sharing my growth. I believe true success comes from becoming who you were created to be, and I want to show the world who I am beyond basketball.”
Rose played 24 games for the Memphis Grizzlies last season, seven as a starter. He became an invaluable locker-room presence to a team plagued by injuries and overshadowed by Ja Morant’s controversies.
The timing of Derrick Rose’s retirement did not surprise many. Although he showed he could still contribute when needed, he was declining. The flashes of explosiveness that fans saw when he was with the New York Knicks had left him as well.
Rose reportedly picked local newspapers in the cities he played for to announce his retirement. He thanked the fans in Chicago, New York, Cleveland, Detroit, Minnesota and Memphis for their support.
An ACL injury derailed Derrick Rose’s NBA superstardom
Derrick Rose took the NBA by storm when he entered in 2008. He was named the Rookie of the Year before becoming an All-Star in the next three years. Rose became the youngest MVP in league history when he won the award during the 2010-11 season.
With Rose on the roster, the Chicago Bulls were again one of the most exciting teams in the NBA. Bulls fans desperately hoped he would be the second coming of Michael Jordan.
In Derrick Rose’s first few years, it looked like the Bulls would challenge for the championship sooner rather than later. Rose led the team to the 2011 Eastern Conference finals before losing to “Heatles” led by LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.
The basketball world expected “D-Rose" to lead the Bulls’ challenge against the vaunted Heat during the 2011-12 season. Rose’s career, though, changed forever when he suffered an ACL injury in Game 1 of the Bulls-76ers series. Chicago was eliminated in six games but the franchise lost more than the series.
Derrick Rose sat out the 2012-13 season despite getting the green light from doctors and training staff to play in March 2013. When he returned at the start of the 2013-14 campaign, he was no longer the player he once was. There were still moments of brilliance but he was clearly not an All-Star player anymore.
Derrick Rose became one of the biggest what-ifs in NBA history as he seemed destined for all-time greatness until an ACL injury derailed his superstardom.