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After the Minnesota Timberwolves destroyed the San Antonio Spurs Wednesday night at home, Timberwolves head coach/president Tom Thibodeau had some high praise for backup point guard Derrick Rose.
The Timberwolves beat the Spurs by a final score of 128-89 to improve to 11-11 on the season. Derrick Rose finished with 16 points in just 18 minutes while shooting 6-of-8 from the field and 4-of-5 from beyond the arc, and Thibs thinks Rose is playing at a level worthy of an All-Star nod:
Thibs on Derrick Rose: “he’s playing at an all-star level.”
— Jace frederick (@JaceFrederick) November 29, 2018
In 20 games this season, Derrick Rose is averaging 19.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. The former MVP is shooting 49.8 percent from the floor, a whopping 48.6 percent from beyond the 3-point line and 85.5 percent from the free-throw line.
Rose is the fourth-best 3-point shooter in the NBA right now, trailing only Bojan Bogdanovic, Nemanja Bjelica and Stephen Curry. All the hard work Rose put in over the summer to improve his jump shot is paying off in a big way.
When the Timberwolves signed Rose last season, the signing came with a horde of criticism from Minnesota fans and media members, as many thought Rose had nothing left in the tank. The 30-year-old had a strong playoff run, though, that won over a lot of fans, and now he's one of the best players on the team this season.
Per Basketball-Reference, the Timberwolves have an offensive rating of 118.6 when Derrick Rose is on the floor. That rating drops to 104.6 when Rose goes to the bench. Making the All-Star team will be hard for Rose, but if he can keep up this production, there's a strong chance the coaches could pick him as a reserve.
