Eastern Notes: Rose, Wizards, Pistons

Derrick Rose caused some eyes to roll when he compared the new-look Knicks to the Warriors, terming New York a potential “super team,” and the point guard isn’t walking those comments back, Ian Begley of ESPN.com writes. “I still believe that,” Rose said. “Like I said, with that Super Team term, you have to be very careful, I guess, if you’re in the United States. But I feel like if you’re in any team in the NBA — it don’t have to be the NBA, it could be the college level, high school level — you should believe in yourself and have the confidence in yourself that you’re playing on a super team anywhere. So I have a lot of confidence, and I’m not taking that back.”

Rose also noted that he plans to share the ball more this season than he has in the past, Begley adds. “We have more options on this team. With the Bulls, we had more options too but the offense really went through me and Jimmy Butler,” Rose said. “With the Knicks, we have [Kristaps Porzingis], we have [Carmelo Anthony], we have [Joakim Noah] rolling to the rim. We’ve got Courtney Lee.”

Here’s more from the Eastern Conference:

• New Wizards coach Scott Brooks is looking forward to coaching the backcourt combo of John Wall and Bradley Beal, a pairing he believes can be one of the league’s top duos, Ben Standig of CSNMid-Atlantic relays. “I haven’t had a chance to coach them yet, but on paper [and] having coached against them, it’s a perfect fit,” Brooks said. “We can have one of the best two-way backcourts in the league.“
• Pistons coach/Executive Stan Van Gundy believes the team’s roster is more versatile than it was a season ago, which he believes will make Detroit a legitimate threat come playoff-time, Keith Langlois of NBA.com relays. “The thing that keeps coming home to me, the more and more you watch the league now but especially in the playoffs, you’ve got to be able to play a lot of different ways,” Van Gundy said. “Everybody thinks about ‘small,’ but then you see Oklahoma City go with Enes Kanter and Steven Adams together. Well, can you play big? Can you play with two point guards together? Can you play with no point guard? And maybe you can’t cover all of those things, but I think you want the flexibility and the versatility on your roster to be able to play as many different ways as you can. And I think we can do that now.”