Derrick Rose needs to be starting for New York

It is pretty clear that Elfrid Payton no longer deserves to be in the Knicks rotation, as he has started the first two games of this series and has played a combined 13 minutes, scoring 1 point. I kind of feel bad for Payton, but this is the playoffs and there is no time to mess around. 

Tom Thibodeau realized this and made the move to start Derrick Rose in the second-half of Game 2, but for Game 3 and moving forward, Rose needs to be in the starting rotation. In 38 minutes off-the-bench in Game 1, Rose scored 17 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 5 assists and in Game 2’s victory for the Knicks, D-Rose played 39 minutes off-the-bench and outscored the entire Hawks’ bench by scoring a team-high 26 points. 

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The performances he has had for the Knicks over the last several weeks has been vintage Derrick Rose and while he may not be the same, explosive player he once was when he won MVP, he is still proving that he is one of the best players on the court night-in and night-out. 

Atlanta is the more talented team on paper and normally gets out to big leads to start the game over the Knicks, which is why they need to make this adjustment to their starting rotation. New York cannot keep playing from behind and trying to catch up to the Hawks, otherwise, they are going to lose this series in 5 games. 

Putting Derrick Rose in the starting rotation gives the Knicks the firepower they need on the court to begin the game and he can still play his full 35+ minutes that he has seen so far in this series. Elfird Payton is a talented defender, but right now, he is getting out played by D-Rose and Immanuel Quickley, which is why Payton needs to be moved out of the rotation completely in this series.