Rose out for season with second serious knee injury in two years.
Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose “will overcome” his latest injury setback according to Miami Heat president Pat Riley.
The 25-year-old suffered another season-ending injury last month after missing all of last season with an ACL tear.
While he has since insisted that he will come back even stronger, Riley has backed him to do so and admits that it is a huge shame for the game of basketball to lose such a talent two years in a row to such serious injuries.
“It’s tragic from the standpoint of where he was heading and had already achieved as an MVP,” Riley said, as reported by ESPN.
“And all of us in this league said this guy is on his way to becoming the best maybe of all time. So he’s been short-circuited with two major injuries the last two years. And it will make him stronger. He will come back.”
Riley compared Rose’s situation to that of former Los Angeles Lakers star James Worthy, who overcame a broken kneecap to join the Hall of Fame and was later named as one of the 50 greatest NBA players of all time.
The Heat’s president believes that Rose can be inspired by that story and repeat history, and is clearly hopeful that his career will be not be ruined by injuries given his likeable character and hard-work on the court.
“I think Derrick will overcome this,” Riley added. “It’s really tragic. It really is — for him, for the game and for competition and what the game is all about.
“This is something that is difficult for anybody to watch who respects hard work and talent and character. He’s a high-character kid. From that standpoint, I think he’s going to overcome this thing.”
Rose played in 10 games this season before suffering a medial meniscus tear in his right knee, but with signs that he was able to recapture his explosiveness and former playing style, there is optimism that he can bounce back from his most recent disappointment.
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