Derrick Rose has played 10 games for the Knicks this season. He lost his eighth consecutive game on Sunday night against the Sixers.
The 32-year-old owner did not play in March – out due to the new chic sporting term: “health and safety protocols”.
Finally back on the Knicks on Thursday, Rose took more shots two hours before the attack and then wore teacher glasses while sitting on the bench in a white dress shirt for Thursday’s victory over Orlando.
Under NBA COVID-19 protocols, Rose has enough negative tests to allow him to be with the team.
According to NBA sources, Rose is in the final stages before being released – needing to go through a series of training sessions to make sure it is safe for him to play.
Last week, Thibodeau said that Rose was “feeling much better”.
The Knicks, under HIPAA laws, are not allowed to confirm that Rose left for a positive test. But Thibodeau’s observation the other day suggested that Rose may have had symptoms.
And this is where this pandemic season still remains frightening and unpredictable. Scientists still do not know the long-term effect of COVID-19 on professional athletes.
Dr. Marc Sala, a lung specialist at Northwestern University and his specialist in COVID-19, told The Post that a professional athlete can still show symptoms even after the test is negative for months – let alone weeks.
Rose last played on February 28 in Detroit. He was excluded from the March 2 game against San Antonio because of an inconclusive test.
“I had people who had been marathon runners and patients with high physical functioning, like an athlete, who still – 12 months later – show symptoms,” said Sala. “Shortness of breath, inability to run again.”
It is a virus that we have never seen.
“Even after the acute viral infection has passed, they can have very prolonged symptoms, even after the virus has disappeared,” said Sala. “We don’t know why and it is a huge area of study at the moment.”
In the case of NBA players like Rose, Sala said the precautionary tests are done to monitor if there is any inflammation in the heart.
According to Sala, the virus “affects the heart, lungs, brain and kidneys”. Rose was probably submitted to electrocardiograms and echocardiograms.
“If the heart is inflamed, activity in the heart is dangerous,” said Sala. “You are conservative when it comes to trying.”
Some Knicks fans are getting impatient, wondering why Rose’s return is taking so long – as if he’s dealing with a sprained right ankle.
Wrong social media conversations led Rose to a friend’s funeral in Chicago. So it was rumored that he was withdrawing from the team because of protocols. Others pointed out that he was AWOL like during his first stint at the Knicks in 2016-17.
Everything, of course, is blatantly false. Rose has been in New York since flying back with the San Antonio team, when the team thought he would play the next game. All Rose needed was more negative tests.
But this is a season like no other and Rose is still out. Somehow, the Knicks survived the lack of shipowners, which also caused Elfrid Payton (hamstring), Immanuel Quickley (ankle) and Austin Rivers (paternity leave) to disappear.
“It is extremely difficult,” said Julius Randle, who has played in all 42 games. “But, as we said all year, the next man will arrive. That is what we are thinking. So, the next guy coming up – the guys did a good job in that role. Anything we can do to achieve victory, regardless of the challenges we face. “
The Knicks are 3-4 since Rose stopped playing because of problems with COVID-19. In their 10 games for the club, the Knicks are 7-3.
The Knicks are at their best with Payton as the starting point guard and Rose and Quickley as a reserve defense team.
Payton and Quickley appear on the verge of a comeback. Rose too.
Mitchell Robinson, out of the last 15 games with a broken hand, had a chance to return on Sunday night.
“It will be a big difference,” said Randle. “We will start as soon as the guys get back to the lineup and get healthy and have a complete team. It will be great.”
But, as we all know, the still mysterious virus means that the only thing that is certain is that there is no certainty. And we can only wish Rose good luck.
“We have no idea what the long-term effects of COVID-19 are on anyone – least of all on athletes who previously had incredible reserve and functions,” said Sala.