Derrick Rose is today's Tracy McGrady

[Murat]

Yes, that's my opinion.

As Bulls failed to make playoffs for the first time since 2008, I felt so sorry for them. If they had a healthy Derrick Rose, I doubt if Warriors would be NBA champions. Think of a guy who immediately made an impact at NBA; you become MVP, you hit Top 10 Plays all the time with your insane drive-ins, you have your own shoe and most importantly you make Chicago Bulls a title contender in 3 years, which happened for the first time since Jordan left the town. Then, after another grrat season, you injure your knee. One year is gone. Then another year is wasted when you tear your meniscus. This is ridiculous. Eventually, what you accomplished back in 2011, is now impossible. You're out of competition. So unfortunate, and so frustrating for Rose, the Bulls and its fans, including me.

Tracy McGrady seemed to create a fan-favorite duo with Yao Ming back in 2004. T-Mac used to hit SportsCenter a lot, I still remember how he drove to the lane in artistry. He had his own shoe too. IIRC he was adored in China, due to the popularity of Yao. Injuries killed this guy too, he was so sworn that he lost his agility and scoring ability in years. Even though he never reached to 2nd round, it was awesome to watch this man.

What made me think that Rose is today's T-Mac is their similarities that I'll write down now.

These guys enjoyed their primes when their respective positions dominated the league. In mid-2000s, NBA was dominated by swingman like LeBron, Kobe, Wade, Carter, Melo, Pierce etc. Today the PG position is played by lots of stars, most dominating include Curry, Westbrook, Paul, Lillard, Rondo (back in 2011)

Another fact is that these ballers were so popular at their prime times. Unfortunately, both were my favorite players, especially Rose.

Minor facts include that both were endorsed by Adidas, they both wore number 1 and they had great supporting casts.

Derrick Rose is still an active player, but I think that he'll never be as amazing as he was back in 2011.

What do you guys think?

[Axel]

McGrady >>> Rose

Not even close.

[NovU]

I agree with Axel. I get the sentiment but T-Mac had quite a successful career even to consider down years. Rose had a one successful season. And even to consider only top of their games, T-Mac was simply a better player.

[Andrew]

Yeah, I wish Rose had a run as a star player that lasted as long as T-Mac's. I mean, there are similarities in that he was establishing himself as a perennial All-Star and finding success in the NBA, only to have his career derailed by injuries, and some inconsequential/coincidental ones such as their shoe brand and jersey number. But in terms of where they were at in their careers, McGrady had more firmly established himself as a star compared to Rose. As players, they're also not that similar.

Anfernee Hardaway is probably a closer comparison (and they too share a jersey number*, though Penny wore Nike), in terms of the timing of their injuries and the resulting career trajectory. Again, there are also differences in the type of player they were and the heights they reached, though I'd say they're more alike than Rose and McGrady, both being point guards who were distributors but also had a strong scorer's mentality. Even then, it's mostly the injuries and quick fall from stardom that make them similar.

You can make some comparisons to a lot of players who were cut down as they were entering their prime, but Penny is probably the most similar in that regard.

* They even both once wore #25.

[air gordon]

reminds me of brandon roy

[Andrew]

Some similarities there, too. In some respects I do place Roy in a different category though, since he had a pre-existing degenerative condition that had been bothering him since college, so in retrospect his NBA career was arguably living on borrowed time and hope. If not for unfortunate injuries, things could have gone quite differently for players like Rose and Penny. Injuries exacerbated Roy's knee problems, but those issues were there before he even went pro.

Anyway, the common theme with all of them is that it's unfortunate to see the careers of stars and rising stars derailed by injuries and so forth. Grant Hill is another prime example here.

[mp3]

Grant Hill is who id go with but another former player comes to mind.

Steve Francis.

[Andrew]

True, injuries slowed his career to a grinding halt, too. He'd been relatively healthy and productive (if not necessarily efficient) for six or seven years before that, though.

[Sauru]

McGrady >>> Rose

Not even close.

thank you for saying this

[shadowgrin]

This comparison is stupid even for you Badger.

Derrick Rose at his MVP best is still inferior to Magic T-Mac.

Even MVP Rose is still inferior to Westbrook this season.