NEW YORK -- Derrick Rose hopes that his decision to leave the the New York Knicks on Monday without initial explanation doesn't impact how the club views him in free agency this summer.
Rose left the team before its game against the New Orleans Pelicans on Monday without informing the Knicks. He said that he returned to his native Chicago to tend to a family issue. The Knicks fined him for missing Monday's game. Rose returned to the team Tuesday and apologized to his teammates, coaches, president Phil Jackson and general manager Steve Mills.