Minnesota Timberwolves: The reinvented Derrick Rose is a 2019 All-Star

The Minnesota Timberwolves’ 3-time All-Star and former MVP Derrick Rose is having one of the better seasons of his infamous career, but can the illustrious guard continue his unbelievable play this season to be a 2019 All-Star?

Minnesota Timberwolves‘ Derrick Rose is looking to continue his wildly successful 10th season in the NBA; trying his best to be a glue for the Wolves’ organization by playing as a shadow of his former self.

Albeit, his shadow progressively becomes semi-translucent each passing game as a glimmer of Rose’s former-MVP self flashes before our eyes.

At 30-years-old, Rose is averaging his highest numbers since his last All-Star season 7 years ago as a 23-year-old young man inspiring the youth of Chicago and giving the Bulls hope for the first time since Michael Jordan laced up.

2018 numbers: 18.5 PPG, 4.6 AST, 2.8 TRB, with astounding shooting splits of 48.5/46.9/84.2.

With those bewildering numbers paired with the injury-riddled career of Rose, a question of him being an All-Star in 2019 seems like a bad joke, but also feels a lot like fate.

Aside from the Rose talk, here is some quick house keeping on how the All-Star voting/game are going to work. 2019 All-Star voting began on Christmas day and the voting rules of this event are the following:

• There will be a total of 12 players voted into the All-Star game, but five starters from each conference will be chosen by the fans, media and players.
• Starter ballots will include two backcourt players and three frontcourt players.
• Head coaches will choose 14 reserves from both conferences (7 each), and the captains will build their teams from the group of selected starters and reserves, regardless of conference.
• If an All-Star player is injured post voting, then head coaches will choose a new reserve to replace the injured player.

Essentially, the All-Star voting is moving towards a healthy mix of input from the basketball community that is comprised of fans, NBA intelligentsia (analysts/media), and players/coaches. The game itself is on a trajectory of having more differentiated lineups that incorporate players from all over the league onto one team, rather than the norm of having conference-built squads.

Aside from diverse voting and lineups, the goal of the new All-Star games is to have the best players team up with one another. And if there is one player that has gotten a lot of love from the current NBA superstars this season, it’s Derrick Rose.

Before I go-on to put D-Rose on a pedestal through the 2 reasons why he should be an All-Star, let me fill you in on what’s been going on with Rose off the court.

Rose has been involved in a civil court case since 2016 and the case has now become sealed and finished with, here is The Blast with more direct news on that subject:

"Via, The Blast “Lawyers for Rose and his accuser battled it out before the court last month and the judges took a couple weeks to reach their decision. The order states the lower court did not rule in error when allowing photos, texts, and testimony to be presented in court, despite Jane Doe’s argument none of it should have been shown. They denied Rose’s attempt to sanction his accuser stating, “Although this Court affirms the district court’s evidentiary decisions and the judgment of the district court, it does not find that Doe’s attorneys brought a frivolous appeal.” Back in 2016, a jury found the NBA star and his two friends not liable for the alleged (assault) of Rose’s former girlfriend. The jury consisted of eight members – six women and two men. According to reports, the jurors were unanimous in their decision on the first vote. They explained that “nothing added up” and therefore it was a quick discussion before they read their verdict in the courtroom. Shortly after the verdict, Jane Doe filed an appeal of the trial decision. She demanded the verdict be thrown out due to the judge’s bad decisions on evidence.”"

I unfortunately cannot speak further on this case, nor the details of it through this outlet. But you can read more about the case from different sides – here, here and here.

I will say that I donated my October FanSided check to RAINN, which is the worlds largest anti-sexual violence organization that works diligently on helping survivors in multiple facets.

If you’d like to donate to RAINN and hopefully help a survivor, please click here.

As for the pursuit of Rose being a 2019 All-Star, here are 2 reasons he should be chosen.