The Rose Has Some Thorns

Nobody is taking the perspective of Derrick Rose here. Kid goes to high school and may never have studied much. Not uncommon in the Chicago school system, I imagine. Starts to realize that he's got some serious skills, and now people (adults) are telling him that he could possibly go to college - something that might have never crossed his mind until then. What was he intending to do for a living before he thought he could possibly parlay his basketball skills into money?

Remember, this is a high school kid. Busy time for a young man who now has to make decisions that will affect the rest of his life. Undoubtedly, as he gets better and stands out more and starts getting recruiter calls, the ante goes up - along with the pressure. At some point, he realizes that he isn't going to the NBA out of high school, so the only way to continue to develop to get there would be to go to college. It's probably way too late to study at this point and I'm assuming he didn't have the money to hire a tutor. Nobody, except for a group of recruiters, knows who Derrick Rose is yet.

So, do you take a risk of failing over and over and eventually blocking yourself from college (your chance to cultivate your skills and fulfill your dreams), or do you take a risk and set your principles aside to clear a few hurdles? If school was not a priority to Rose all along, I can see why standardized testing would also not seem like a big deal to him. I think the bigger tragedy is that the only way for Derrick Rose to have succeeded here required this fork in the road.

Since this incident, it sure appears as though he's put in world-class effort. Just based on the games I've seen with the Bulls, he doesn't look or act like a cheater. On the other hand, what he did was wrong. (Assuming he did it.) I don't think his success justifies anything, but I do think that what he did (if he did it) is unsavory at worst. He was not trying to become a scientist, he was taking an academics test to play basketball.

My guess is that this is the sentiment that Alderwoman Davis is trying to convey, but I don't think she is helping Derrick Rose. What if he cops to the whole thing? He seems like a stand up guy, and if he did do what has been alleged, this is his opportunity to do the right thing and take responsibility.