It’s hard to beat this as a location for a marriage proposal.
Derrick Rose got engaged on Tuesday, popping the question at center court on the Garden floor to longtime girlfriend Alaina Anderson. They have two children together.
“Not bad,” coach Tom Thibodeau said, referring to the spot of the proposal. “Real happy for him. Just seeing where he is. He’s in a really good place, on the court, off the court, all around. Alaina is a wonderful person. Just seeing how happy he is, we’re thrilled.”
When asked if Thibodeau will be Rose’s best man at his wedding, he joked: “I don’t know about that.”
He may have to settle for merely being in the wedding party. Rose has played for Thibodeau for three different teams — the Bulls, Timberwolves and now the Knicks.
Rose started on Wednesday against the Pistons in place of Kemba Walker (rest).
With Walker out on Wednesday, Thibodeau said he would use a variety of options as Rose’s backup at the point. That included playing Immanuel Quickley, Alec Burks and rookie Miles McBride in that spot.
“You can mix and match with them, and it’s seamless and we’ve done that at practice, and that’s what I’ve meant by you’d like to see if you can do it in the game,” Thibodeau said.
As for Walker, Thibodeau said he merely wanted to give him some rest and make sure he was ready for the start of the season. The 31-year-old Walker has a history of knee problems and was limited to 43 games for the Celtics a year ago and didn’t play in back-to-backs.
It should be noted that the Knicks said Nerlens Noel (knee/hamstring) was being rested for the preseason opener, before later revealing his injury. He has yet to appear in a preseason game, although Thibodeau said the veteran center is close to being fully back.
Celtics forward Al Horford is expected to be out for the regular-season opener against the Knicks next Wednesday after he tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, coach Ime Udoka told reporters. Jaylen Brown tested positive for the virus Friday, but should be back by the time of the game at the Garden.