Jimmy Butler pays tribute to Derrick Rose in Instagram post
Wednesday’s trade of Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks ends an era for the Chicago Bulls, who drafted the hometown star with the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2008 and saw him develop into the NBA MVP just three years later. Rose became the face of the franchise, a status that became increasingly precarious and unproductive as his knee injuries diminished his abilities. The Bulls arguably suffered for planning to depend on Rose as much as they did over the past few seasons, but the decision to move him is an emotional one nonetheless.
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That goes not just for Bulls fans, but the man set to replace him as the team’s marquee player. All-Star Jimmy Butler responded to the news of the Rose trade with a tribute to his teammate of five seasons (via EOB):
My point guard, my brother: you taught me so much since I came into this league as a 21 year old kid from Marquette. For me, coming to Chicago to play and learn from you, an MVP, was eye-opening. You helped shape me into the player I am today. Helped teach me the work ethic needed to excel in this league. You are a leader, thru and thru. Always a supportive teammate and friend. I’ll always be thankful for the opportunity I had to play alongside you each night and I know you’re going to continue to be the great player and leader you were in Chicago for years to come.
The sentiment is very nice, especially since Butler and Rose did not always fit together easily as the former ascended to stardom and the latter missed more and more time with injury. Butler’s preseason claim that he sees himself as a point guard probably didn’t go over very well with Rose, and both players sometimes seemed unready to defer to the other (if only on the court).
However, Butler was able to forget all that and credit Rose for all he did for him and the franchise in his career. Rose’s career in Chicago didn’t go as planned, but Butler has big shoes to fill nonetheless.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
