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The Sports Xchange

OVERVIEW

The premier point guard coming out of high school, it did not take long for Derrick Rose to earn the same billing. In one season playing for the Memphis Tigers, Rose proved capable of taking over a game in ways other than scoring but was always a threat to score.

Rose had 189 assists, best by a freshman in school history.

Anfernee Hardawy (14 vs. Georgia State in 1993) was the last Memphis player to put on a performance like the one Rose produced vs. Austin Peay State in 2007, compiling 12 assists in just his sixth collegiate contest. Later in the season, he posted 11 assists vs. Alabama-Birmingham and also had nine-assist performances vs. Gonzaga and Texas. Against the Longhorns, in the NCAA Tournament, he also tallied 21 points and six rebounds, holding All-American point guard D.J. Augustin to making just 4-of-18 shooting.

A consensus top-five recruit at Simeon Career Academy, Rose was named to the USA Today 2007 All-USA Team (first team) -- Rob Harrington of USA Today rated him the country's top point guard. He was also selected to the 2007 Parade Magazine All-American team, marking the third time in his prep career he made the Parade national squad.

SLAM magazine, MaxPreps.com and EA Sports all awarded Rose All-American honors during his senior season. The two-time Illinois All-State choice averaged 25.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, 8.8 assists and 3.4 steals, while shooting 59 percent from the floor, as he led the school to a 33-2 overall record and the Illinois Class AA championship in 2006-07.

Simeon Academy became the first Chicago Public League team to win consecutive state titles. After scoring 28 points, with nine assists and eight rebounds vs. Oak Hill Academy, he received USA Today's national high school Player of the Week honors.

As a junior in 2005-06, Rose averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 8.7 assists and 2.6 steals, shooting 57.0 percent from the field. He helped lead the Wolverines to a 33-4 record and the Illinois Class AA championship, as Simeon also won the Chicago city championship.

As a sophomore in 2004-05, Rose guided the team to a 30-5 record, averaging 19.8 points, 5.1 boards, 8.3 assists and 2.4 steals. As a freshman, he averaged 18.5 points, 6.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 2.1 steals.

Rose played in the Jordan Brand and McDonald's All-America games. He also participated for Team USA in the Nike Hoops Summit Game, which was played in Memphis. He had five points, six boards and five assists in helping lead the West squad to a 114-112 win in the McDonald's All-America Game.

In the Nike Hoops Summit, he scored eight points, grabbed five boards and dished out three assists as the USA Junior National Select Team defeated the World Select Team, 100-80. He posted 12 points, 10 boards and five assists in the Jordan Brand All-America Classic, helping lead the Yellow squad to a 127-119 win at Madison Square Garden.

In his only season at Memphis, Rose was a Bob Cousy Award finalist, earning Associated Press All-American accolades. He was named the MVP of the NCAA Tournament South Region and chosen the Conference USA's Freshman of the Year, in addition to being named to the league's first-team.

Rose set a single-season record for freshmen with 189 assists. He finished second on the team in scoring with an average of 14.9 points per game, shooting .541 from the field and .413 from 3-point range. He hit on 71.2 percent of his free throws, pulling down 165 rebounds and coming up with 48 steals. He fouled out of one of the 39 games he started, appearing in 40 contests total.

ANALYSIS

Positives: Built more like a shooting guard, Rose's combination of athleticism, explosiveness and outstanding speed make him a terrific mismatch vs. most point guards ... Capable of consistently beating his man with suddenness ... Plays with the same efficiency as a scorer or defender, priding himself on have a complete game ... Is simply too explosive with the ball in his hands for most guards to contain ... In addition to his superb speed running the court, he has the balance and body control to stop on a dime, set his feet, elevate and generate a high release point to fire off his jumper ... Has the long wingspan and active hands to take the man off the dribble and can become a very proficient pass thief at the next level ... Evaluators don't see any selfishness in his game and have said that he plays with a blue-collar work ethic, deferring to teammates on and off the court ... Has very good balance to make the stutter-step moves that leave the defender grasping at air while Rose slashes to the rim ... Very smart and alert when attacking the defense and it is rare to see him drive into the lane without purpose ... Despite having an unselfish nature, he also plays with very good aggression, showing great confidence in his pull-up jumper ... Needs to add more upper-body strength, but knows how to dip his shoulder and power his way past defenders into the lane ... Took over running the defense as soon as he showed up at the university and despite being a freshman, he is mature beyond his years and served as the unquestioned floor leader for the Tigers ... Has excellent stamina and court presence, playing with the same intensity whether handling the ball or playing without it in his hands ... Gets excellent elevation and hang-time attacking the basket ... His talent is in his ability to control the game, knowing when to push the ball hard on the fast break or pull up to change the tempo to a half-court game ... Not the type that will force the action, as he will flip the ball back to an open teammate rather than drive into the lane when he can't find a seam to the basket ... Even when caught out of position on help defense, he has incredible lateral agility to quickly recover ... Has good outside shooting range ... Does a very good job drawing contact regularly to get to the charity stripe ... Shows excellent elevation and extension for a player his size, able to get to the rim and finish ... Still working on setting his elbows better attempting free throws, but his accuracy is good enough for foul shooting to become an asset in the NBA ... Generates very good height and trajectory firing his jumper over the bigger defenders ... Suddenness coming off dribble penetration allows him to deliver with his array of shots ... Has a good feel for creating clean shots for himself in the half-court game or by dishing the ball out to a teammate when driving into the lane ... Equally adept at shooting and handling the ball with either hand, using his right-handed floater often, as he seems to draw a lot of contact when utilizing that shot going to the rim ... Can play either guard position and while his assist totals are not as lofty as a Steve Nash or Jason Kidd, he has the creativity in his game to be an assist man if the system asks that of him ... Constantly keeps the opposition off balance when he's handling the ball, as he gets great separation with his hesitation move and ability to vary the speed on his dribble ... Will generally beat his defender off the dribble and is under control even when moving at top speed ... Does a nice job of pushing the ball up the court ... Mature well beyond his years, showing the court vision and patience of a Walt Frazier-type player ... Unselfish to a fault, as he plays with a passer's mentality, despite having obvious NBA-caliber scoring range and touch to create his own shot ... Savvy shooter with nice touch executing his fade-away jumper ... Has excellent extension and range to make the NBA 3-point attempts ... As a ball-handler, he excels at creating passing lanes ... Shows very good cross-over skills and has "ice water" running through his veins, as even the more physical opponent fails to rattle him ... Is the type of player that is a viable scorer even with defenders draped all over him, relishing taking that money shot with the game on the line ... Demonstrates a very quick second leap going for the rebound or put back off the offensive glass ... Fourth-quarter performer who seems to find the something extra typical of championship performers ... Very good defender who can defend "2" guards because of his length ... Quick hands and takes good angles to get into position to intercept passes.

Negatives: Has improved his long-range shooting mechanics, but is a bit too inconsistent with his release, sometimes appearing to shot-put the ball from his shoulder ... No matter how well he performed, being a targeted early first-round pick will lead to fans having high expectations from him, but point guards, more than any other position, take a few years to master before a player can run an NBA team ... Can play in the half-court game, but is more comfortable in an up-tempo, open-court attack ... Type of player that gets his points in stretches and when taken out of that rhythm, it takes a long time in the game for him to get it back, resulting in questionable shot selection ... His offensive game, especially his jumper from mid-range, has potential but he might never develop into a sensational scoring threat in the Dwyane Wade mold ... Has 3-point ability, but is more comfortable from mid-range than firing from the deep perimeter, and opponents have left him alone for wide-open looks ... Generally a good ball-handler, but has lost quite a few ball coming off the dribble-drive action (relies on his athleticism to force his way past the defender).

Compares To: JASON KIDD-Dallas ... Rose is an unselfish player with the ball and could be very effective feeding teammates in an up-tempo attack. He relies more on athleticism than technique creating his shot, but still needs to improve his range when firing from the perimeter. He takes controlled drives to the basket but his aggressiveness slashing to the basket can get him in trouble at times. He has very good quickness and the ability to handle the ball with either hand. He is still a work in progress playing in the half-court game, but shows good finishing skills around the basket. He's not going to put down 30 points a game like Kobe or D-Wade, but in time, he could join the new breed of unselfish ball-handling point guards to make regular trips to the All-Star Game. While some say Chicago will pass on their native son, one look at this draft and you will find quite a few shooting guards disguised as point men. The crop at this position offers few players that can start in the NBA.

CAREER NOTES

Rose's 597 points rank second on the school season-record list for freshman, topped only by Dajuan Wagner (762 points, 2001-02) ... His 208 field goals made rank third by a Tigers freshman in a season, surpassed by Wagner (265) and Dexter Reed (216, 1973-74) ... Made 146 of his free throw attempts, ranking behind Wagner (166) and Darius Washington Jr. (151, 2004-05) on the school freshman season-record list ... Rose's 189 assists set a fresh-man season-record, surpassing the previous mark of 170 by Vincent Askew (1984-85) ... His 189 assists also rank sixth on the school's overall single-season chart.

2007-08 SEASON

All-American second-team selection by The NBA Draft Report, adding third-team honors from the Associated Press ... Consensus Freshman All-American first-team choice ... Was a finalist for the Cousy Award, given to the nation's top point guard ... Also a finalist for the Wooden Award, given to the top player in college basketball ... First-team All-Conference USA choice and named the league's Freshman of the Year ... Set a school season-record for freshman with 189 assists ... Started 39-of-40 games at point guard, finishing second on the team with 597 points (14.9 per game), as he made 208-of-436 field goals (47.7 percent ), including 35-of-104 3-pointers (33.7 percent ), as he also hit on 146-of-205 free throws (71.2 percent ) ... Pulled down 181 rebounds (4.5 per game), including 54 from the offensive glass ... Generated 48 steals and blocked 18 shots ... Fouled out of one game, as he was charged with 68 personal fouls and 107 turnovers ... Scored double digits in 29 games and had ten rebounds once (vs. Southern California).

2007-08 GAME ANALYSIS

Made his collegiate debut with five assists, 17 points and six rebounds vs. Tennessee-Martin, followed by 21 points on 6-of-8 shooting vs. Richmond ... Named the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic/Memphis Regional MVP and was selected to the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic All-Tournament Team, as he averaged 20.5 points and 5.5 boards in two games, including 24 points vs. Connecticut and 17 more in the Oklahoma clash ... Posted his first collegiate double-double with 19 points and 12 assists vs. Austin Peay. His 12 assists were the most for a Tiger in a single game since Anfernee Hardaway dished out 14 dimes vs. Georgia State on Jan. 4, 1993 ... Had nine points, 10 boards (season high), four assists and three steals vs. Southern California, pressuring guard O.J. Mayo all day, as the Trojan made just 6-of-20 field goals. Rose accounted for all eight points (two field goals, two assists) in an 8-0 run that turned a 41-46 deficit to a 49-46 lead in a 1:18 span in the second half vs. the Trojans and then hit the game-clinching free throw with seven seconds left in overtime ... Scored a regular-season high 26 points vs. Cincinnati, as he also posted season bests vs. the Bearcats for treys made (5) and attempts (8), followed by 18 points and six assists vs. Georgetown to earn C-USA Player of the Week for his performance in those two games ... Scored 23 points vs. Southern Mississippi, as he had 22 of his 23 in the second half vs. the Golden Eagles, including the team's final seven points (trey, 4-of-4 FT) to seal the win ... Followed with a superb showing vs. Tennessee, as he came up with a game-high 23 points, five boards, five assists and four steals (career-high), holding guard Chris Lofton to seven points on 2-of-11 shooting ... Added 17 points vs. Texas-El Paso, as he netted four points (lane jumper, 2 FT) in final 0:51 to help seal the win ... Nearly had a triple-double vs. Gonzaga with 19 points, eight boards and nine assists ... Added 12 points, three boards and five assists vs. Arizona ... Dished out 11 assists vs. Alabama-Birmingham (high in league play) ... Averaged 12.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists in the Conference USA Tournament, including 25 points vs. Southern Mississippi in the tournament semifinal ... Netted career-high 27 points vs. Michigan State in the South Region semifinals and had 21 points, nine assists and six boards vs. Texas in the South Region final ... Poured in 25 points vs. UCLA in the Final Four, as he hit a season-high 11 free throws vs. Bruins ... Closed out the year with 18 points, six rebounds, eight assists and two steals, but also turned the ball over five times, as Kansas beat Memphis for the NCAA championship.

INJURY REPORT

No injuries reported.

HIGH SCHOOL

Attended Simeon (Chicago, Ill.) Career Academy ... Consensus top-five recruit ... Named to the USA Today 2007 All-USA Team (first team), as Rob Harrington of USA Today rated him the country's top point guard ... Also selected to the 2007 Parade Magazine All-American team, marking the third time in his prep career he made the Parade national squad ... SLAM magazine, MaxPreps.com and EA Sports all awarded Rose All-American honors during his senior season ... The two-time Illinois All-State choice averaged 25.2 points, 9.1 rebounds, 8.8 assists and 3.4 steals, while shooting 59 percent from the floor, as he led the school to a 33-2 overall record and the Illinois Class AA championship in 2006-07 ... Simeon Academy became the first Chicago Public League team to win consecutive state titles ... After scoring 28 points, with nine assists and eight rebounds vs. Oak Hill Academy, he received USA Today's national high school Player of the Week honors ... As a junior in 2005-06, he averaged 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 8.7 assists and 2.6 steals, shooting 57.0 percent from the field, helping lead the Wolverines to a 33-4 record and the Illinois Class AA champion-ship, as Simeon also won the Chicago city crown ... As a sophomore in 2004-05, he guided the team to a 30-5 record, averaging 19.8 points, 5.1 boards, 8.3 assists and 2.4 steals ... As a freshman, he averaged 18.5 points, 6.6 assists, 4.7 rebounds and 2.1 steals.

SUMMER BASKETBALL

Rose played in the Jordan Brand and McDonald's All-America games ... Also participated for Team USA in the Nike Hoops Summit Game, which was played in Memphis ... Had five points, six boards and five assists in helping lead the West squad to a 114-112 win in the McDonald's All-America Game ... In the Nike Hoops Summit, he scored eight points, grabbed five boards and dished out three assists as the USA Junior National Select Team defeated the World Select Team, 100-80 ... Posted 12 points, 10 boards and five assists in the Jordan Brand All-America Classic, helping lead the Yellow squad to a 127-119 win at Madison Square Garden.

PERSONAL

General Studies major ... Son of Brenda Rose ... Born Derrick Martell Rose on 10/04/88 ... Resides in Chicago, Illinois.