Pretty sure Doc Rivers said to the media he did not want to play the Knicks in the playoffs. It could be one of those things coaches say, but that could be an explanation.
Then shouldn't they have been trying to win to get the #2 seed and the Sixers in the playoffs? Tanking only assured them of getting the Knicks in Rd# 1.
Check out the great writeup on Derrick Rose over on ESPN Chicago. Maybe it's because I'm a fanboy, but I found it to be a great read.
You know, with the whole "Derrick Rose is an awesome person" narrative...it's amazing how quickly everyone forgot the whole "cheated on the SAT" thing.
Lost in THAT narrative is the fact that he routinely got near-perfect scores on practice SATs. He only cheated as an ironic send-up to the idea that standardized testing is the best way to judge the college-readiness of 16 year olds. His theories have some minor flaws, but you have to admit that despite his somewhat poor grasp of trig, he can jump really high.
Generally speaking, cheating and/or fraud is something that is frowned upon by our society, no? The guy's incredibly talented and I would vote for him as MVP, but it seems worth remembering in the context of the whole "Derrick Rose is the NBA's Jesus" thing that some writers are putting forth (see: Rick Reilly not too long ago. Yes, I know, picking on Rick Reilly is like shooting fish in a barrel). Especially since (as far as I know) he has never owned up to it.
You mean cheating/fraud on an idiotic standardized test that will have absolutely nothing to do with Rose's future profession whatsoever? A test that is nothing more than a cover for NCAA to keep up the ridiculous "student athlete" rhetoric for someone like Rose, while they make millions of dollars from his time playing college basketball, and he gets nothing? Yeah, I don't see how that reflects negatively on him. Yes, Rick Reilly is a fucking dumbass, but Rose is legitimately a great teammate, leader, and hard worker. Those are indeed laudable, awesome qualities.
Really? College isn't a right. He wanted to go to Memphis, so he cheated to spite the fact that he wasn't qualified. If he wanted to play professional basketball, he could have gone the Brandon Jennings route, but he flouted the rules for personal gain. And did so in a dishonest way, and without admitting it. In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't define his character, but yeah, it reflects poorly.
Flouted the rules for personal gain? Sounds like you're describing the NCAA, not Rose. I'm sure in retrospect he wishes he had gone the Jennings route, but it was a brand new avenue at the time. Honestly, who gives a fuck if he cheated on some test, especially one utterly meaningless to his career? In the US, there's a holier-than-thou stigma about cheating on tests, which I have always found extremely ridiculous and hypocritical.
I suppose the fact that he cheated should be included in the mix of things when assessing his character, but I would give it little or no weight. The entire NCAA and student/athlete "system" is a cesspool of hypocrisy. I view his cheating as a very minor act amongst much worse stuff. In another context, and for comparison sake, it is far more relevant and interesting to me that our Vice President plagerized a paper in law school -- at least that act is somewhat relevant to his current position. But I think that act by Biden, in the context of his life, is less than inconsequential.
Yeah, and I'm also pretty sure that if you asked every single HS student if they could cheat on their SATs, a third to half would. Those things are miserable and ridiculous. Anyone remember one SAT question? I doubt it. And if one is going to get righteous on something, don't let it be the despicable standardized test. Now if he cheated on the LSAT, GMAT, GRE or any advanced program, sure. SAT, don't care. Then again, he's not solving any crimes, handling anyone's money, or cutting anyone open...who cares? Pretty sure if he took the test he'd still score high enough to posterize Dragic. Playoff thread anyone? Yessir.