Richard Hamilton Says Pre-Injury Derrick Rose Was The Most Talented Player He Has Played With
Richard ‘Rip’ Hamilton had the chance to play with different tremendous NBA players during his 14-year career in the NBA; Michael Jordan, Mitch Richmond, Chauncey Billups, Tayshaun Prince, Rasheed Wallace, Ben Wallace and Allen Iverson to only name a few. But interestingly, none of these players were considered by Hamilton as his most talented teammate.
Sitting with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson for an ‘All The Smoke’ podcast a while back, Hamilton looked back at his time in Chicago, playing with Derrick Rose, and revealed that Rose was the most talented player he has ever played with.
“I played with a lot of great players. Derrick Rose during that time, was probably the most talented player I ever played with,” Hamilton said.
Rip Hamilton spent two seasons with the Bulls before calling it a career. He played with Rose during the shortened season in 2011-2012, but was unable to share minutes with him in his second year in 2012-13, since Rose was out for the whole season due to an injury.
That one season alone was all Hamilton needed to proclaim Rose as the most talented player he has ever played with. Rose averaged 21.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game on 43.5% shooting from the field and was an All-Star in that same year.