Derrick Rose made his debut for the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday night against the New Orleans Pelicans, and despite getting a lout ovation from the crowd when he checked in for the first time, he made it clear that he is too upset about the 111-104 loss to appreciate it too much.

“It would have been better with a win,” Derrick Rose said, via Mark Giannotto of Memphis News. “I can't even smile about it, bro. I'm not phony. I can't be spurious with it. It's just hard.”

The Grizzlies lost the game 111-104, and Rose put up eight points in 16 minutes off the bench. Desmond Bane did all he could to help the Grizzlies win, scoring 31, but it was not enough. A well-rounded effort from the Pelicans helped them come away with the win.

Zion Williamson scored 23 on 9-for-17 shooting, while CJ McCollum led the team in scoring with 24 on 8-for-16 shooting, and Brandon Ingram put up 19. All Pelicans starters scored in the double digits.

RECOMMENDED (Article Continues Below)
Grizzlies' Ja Morant stands next to Mike Miller with agents in the background

Christopher Smith ·

Memphis Grizzlies' forward Yuta Watanabe with grizzly bears with him.

Benjamin Adducchio ·

Grizzlies Derrick Rose Ja Morant

Peter Sampson ·

This was the first game of Ja Morant's 25-game suspension for the Grizzlies, and they will have 24 more games to play without him. Hopefully they can stay afloat and find some wins. It does not get any easier in their next game, as they will face the Denver Nuggets at home on Friday.

Rose was brought in for veteran leadership, but he made it clear that he is with the Grizzlies to try to win. His mentality in the post-game press conference shows that. The talent is certainly there for Memphis.