Is Derrick Rose retiring? The last time this question arose was a year ago after his New York stint. Rose himself revealed that the thought had crossed his mind, stating, “Just trying to figure out my route if I wanted to stay or leave.” Fortunately, the Memphis Grizzlies provided him a lifeline, through a two-year minimum contract. Having now been waived, at his own request, the question was back on everyone’s mind. Adding to that, the hooper’s recent social media update is certainly not helping things.

A few hours ago, Derrick Rose took to his official Instagram account to share a post with his 1.8 million followers. With snippets showcasing the player being in a somber mood, either looking out the window, holding a rose, writing something in a notebook, or walking around his house, viewers may have been expecting the worst.

However, the clip has somewhat of a ‘Sopranos’ type ending, with Derrick Rose sitting across a table with a chess board on it, and as he looked up at the camera, it immediately cut to a pitch-black frame. If anyone watched the Sopranos ending, they were certainly not happy because it left more questions than answers, and that same mood seems to be reflecting in Rose’s post too.

Are Ja Morant and the NBA world bracing themselves for a possible retirement announcement from Derrick Rose?

No sooner had the post gone up than reactions started to pour in from all sides. Among the first people to react was Derrick Rose’s former teammate, Ja Morant himself. Without saying much, he simply left a ‘rose’ emoticon as a comment. As if there was any more need for a suspense! Matt Reyes, a bike enthusiast with over 60,900 followers on Instagram, was more open to revealing his true thoughts as he said, “Don’t say it.”

Amongst the group of celebrities was also ‘YourRAGE’, a popular video creator on YouTube. Just like the majority of commenters, he dreaded the player’s potential exit, writing “You are my everything.”

Making a reference to Michael Jordan‘s 1997-98 season, one netizen wrote, “Come back to chicago for one last dance.” Chicago was the place where Derrick Rose got the start to his NBA career, being drafted as the 1st overall pick back in 2008. In the six years that followed, he earned the MVP title and an All-NBA First Team honor, while also being named to the All-Star team thrice.

The last contract that the hooper held with the Bulls was a whopping 5-year, $94.3 million extension deal. Therefore, even if a portion of it is awarded for another year, it might be enough to convince Rose to once again lace up his shoes for the Chicago side!

As confused as every other social media user, another individual simply asked, “Making the switch to professional chess?”

There may be some logic behind this theory. Derrick Rose captioned his post as “The Renascence 9.26.24.” Renascence simply means “the revival of something that has been dormant.” Longtime fans of Derrick Rose know he is a big chess enthusiast. In 2023, he even planned to hold ‘Chesstival’, an event that brought in athletes, musicians, and others for a high-stakes chess tournament. However, plans had to be postponed, and there’s been no update for over a year. What better way to revive its hype through a cryptic post?

Overall, the majority of commenters were united in their plea for Derrick Rose to not announce his retirement so soon. If Ja Morant went so far as to leave a remark, he would really have wanted to gain more of that on-court bond that was missed out.

Did Ja Morant play alongside Derrick Rose in the Memphis Grizzlies?

Derrick Rose was not someone who was present that much for the Memphis Grizzlies during the recent season. Along with averaging 8 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 3.3 assists, he merely appeared in 24 games. If that wasn’t enough, even Ja Morant was not someone who was fully relied on. After returning from suspension in December 2023, he only stayed on till January 2024 and had to then undergo surgery on his right shoulder. As a result, the duo barely played alongside each other for only 2 games, a combined 21 minutes.

While they couldn’t bond on the court, both Derrick Rose and Ja Morant made the best use of their time when away from it. A friendship between them reportedly developed after the former Bulls player’s son, PJ Rose, ended up joining one of Morant’s youth team, which was a part of his Twelve Time AAU program.

In April, PJ Rose ended up making the buzzer-beater shot that secured the championship title for his team. By the time the Grizzlies stars were set to give their exit interviews, Morant was in awe of his new teammate, stating that he had a “tremendous impact” on him and the other players and that he’s “pretty much a big brother.”

Unfortunately, from all the recent speculation, it seems like the big brother won’t be staying in the league itself anymore.

Before you go, remember to check out this crossover between BG12 and Georgia Bulldogs star Silas Demary Jr.