Derrick Rose: Dividing Bulls Fans Everywhere!
By Ronald Agers
Nov 16, 2013; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose (1) shoots over Indiana Pacers point guard George Hill (3) during the second quarter at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
Well Pippen Peoples let’s see, the Chicago Bulls have dropped $94 million dollars on Derrick Rose and there’s still…NO PRODUCTION! This is BADOODLES! This is what a growing sentiment of the Bulls nation have said for the last two years.
Well Pippen Peoples let’s see, when Derrick Rose returns to the court healthy. The Chicago Bulls will be able to contend with the Miami Heat and dethrone them as the Eastern Conference champions. That’s what the other sentiment of the Bulls nation has said for the last two years.
There were two articles that were done by Pippen Ain’t Easy recently. The first one was done by super sleuth staff writer Michael Rosenfeld a couple of weeks ago about Derrick Rose and his trying out this summer for Team USA named…Derrick Rose and Team USA: A Win/Win for the Bulls. I read the 14 comments that were under the article (by the way Pippen Peoples thanks for the comments! They are appreciated!) and a debate broke out. There were discussions over…
1) The details of his injury and how serious a torn meniscus injury is.
2) Then comments were laid out questioning whose a diehard Bulls fan or not.
3) The comparisons to other players such as Brandon Roy and Dwyane Wade, shoot even their own experiences.
4) When he should have come back last year.
5) My personal favorite and I quote “Medically/biologically speaking…your post makes no sense. Sorry.
Then I did an article a couple of days ago…NBA: Rumors: Derrick Rose! Linked To Everything! This piece talks about how every single decision that is going on with the Chicago Bulls now and in the future is directly tied into the health of Derrick Rose. We’re talking about the NBA Draft here, the impending free agency period coming up, all of the Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Love rumors, everything here. I read the comments below. Dang Pippen Peoples!
We only need one comment here to make my point.
“Derrick Rose SUCKS! Not because he had an injury and not because I’m hating, he sucks because he’s too cocky and to arrogant to see that if he doesn’t change his style of play, he’ll get injured AGAIN! And the Bulls will be handcuffed to the rest of that 90 million deal for a player who they though t would be great, but ended up useless.”
This post sent everyone into a tizzy. I’m not going to write all of the responses because believe me, we’d all miss the NBA Draft on Thursday if I did. To see all the posts from these two stories just log on to Pippen Ain’t Easy and check them out.
Let’s get this out-of-the-way quick, fast and in a hurry. Derrick Rose does not suck. Everybody in the NBA can play. I have played pick up ball with NBA players and anyone that has played with one at anytime in their lives will tell you that they are on a totally different level than we are mentally and physically. I remember playing with Rodney Rogers back in the 90’s. He was so big and strong with speed to go with it, I was useless on the court playing against him. I’ve played with Tim Duncan literally thinking how am I going to get a shot off. When you get an idea of how big these guys are, you get an understanding of how hard it is to play in the NBA. These guys were playing pickup and they weren’t even trying.
As for the knee injuries. Stop trying to figure it out. No one knows what this man’s knee feels like. I’ve never had a knee injury and I thank my God Jesus Christ every time I leave a basketball court that I didn’t hurt my knees. I’ve planted knees wrong and didn’t go up so I am lucky.
I have witnessed someone blow their ACL out. Based on what he said it takes eight months to a year to REALLY get back from this injury. It was this point he made that tells me that Derrick Rose is working hard to get back on the court. He told me that you can’t half-step on rehab. If you do the knee will be in worse shape than it was before you injured it the first time. He told me the rehab is actually the hardest thing in life to go through sometimes.
Here’s the mistake that Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls made when the first injury occurred. He tried to rush back and make the playoffs. When he opened his mouth and said “I may make it back for the playoffs”. The Pandora’s Box was opened and he has been playing catchup ever since. In my opinion, D-Rose was guilty of two things…
1) Trying to be there for his teammates.
For all of the things being said about Derrick Rose, good or bad, you have never heard anything about him being a bad teammate. There was an outpouring of support throughout the NBA pulling for Rose to get back. Trust me if he was dogging it Joakim Noah wouldn’t be able to hide his frustrations. Dig me.
2) Derrick Rose was trying to live up to his huge contract.
I don’t think we all realize the pressure that comes with a max contract. As soon as the ink dried on the $94 million dollar deal, the clock started ticking on Derrick Rose bringing a championship to Chicago. If you don’t think that pressure is real, take a look at Roy Hibbert. After signing his big deal, his game is hanging on a wanted poster in the U.S. Post Office. He’s 7’2 and can’t get rebounds on some nights.
The Bulls mistake…they allowed the scenario to get out without being sure.
Let’s all pump the brakes when it comes to Derrick Rose not coming back for this year’s playoffs. He was smart, the Bulls had no chance of making a championship run. If you have an issue with what I just said go take a look at last year’s playoff roster and come back and finish reading this article. Derrick Rose was not going to be in-game shape and in rhythm to play intense playoff basketball. This was a good move. The only thing is this should have happened one year prior. Then maybe these debates wouldn’t be going on right now.
Now let’s talk about that contract. To all the Derrick Rose fans out there. You need to listen. Injuries happen, but that contract is killing the Bulls right now. It is inhaling salary cap space that is hurting the Bulls chances to provide depth for Rose in this so-called championship chase. Here’s why the “Rose haters” are so upset. They read over and over for the last few years that when D-Rose comes back the Bulls are going to be championship contenders. I know what these guys are thinking…
Yawn! Yeah sure, when?
These are fair questions. Like it or not. That’s what Derrick Rose or anyone who signs a max deal gets with all that money. If Carmelo Anthony came to Chicago and signed for 90 million dollars and sat the bench with injuries, would you be ready to light him up too?
I understand fully what Derrick Rose was talking about when he said he was trying to get mentally ready before coming back to play for the Bulls. My question is what’s the difference of say…two months?
Derrick Rose is reportedly among the 28 players invited to the tryouts at the USA Mini Camp in Las Vegas at the end of July. He is trying to make the team to play I the FIBA World Championship this August in Spain.
Check out what head coach Mike Krzyzewski said to Andy Katz on the ESPNU College Basketball Podcast about Derrick Rose and his participation…
“He can’t make the team unless he’s ready to go full-bore. And knowing Derrick I would think he’ll be ready, and hopefully he’ll be 100 percent.”
Sure, and I can’t be Editor of this website if I can’t type. And my bosses think I’ll be ready to write the articles for Pippen Ain’t Easy and hopefully I’ll make the quota for articles each month. What you heard was a side-stepping sound bite. Coach K is not going to paint himself into a corner of having to put him on the team. Come on now! The Bulls still have to pay Derrick Rose $60 million dollars for the duration of his contract. The U.S.A. pays well, let me put it this way, Close your eyes. What do you see? Nothing? That’s what he’s getting paid. I know exactly what some of you are thinking. It’s an honor to play for your country. Sure but it’s profitable to be playing for the Bulls.
Finally, let’s all stop trying to compare this Derrick Rose that is coming back to the MVP of the past. He’s gone. The MVP Derrick Rose had two good knees (or good enough), this one has two injured ones. See the difference. As for Derrick Rose changing his game, what ever happened to evolving? If he has been doing what he’s supposed to do a professional basketball player, his game should be different anyway. Here’s what I think.
1) He needs to get more efficient.
Before the injuries, Rose could get away with athleticism. Not a bad thing because no one in the NBA could stay in front of him. That cross over could put a player in the parking lot. By the time he got back in the arena the ball was on the other end. Now the injuries have robbed some of the speed and quickness he had. He has to adapt. Period. If you want him to stay as your point guard Pippen Peoples let me tell you something, four turnovers is not a good thing. Bad knees or not.
2) He’d better take some of that money and buy a consistent jumper.
It’s not about the ridiculous 33% shooting and some change Derrick Rose shot from the field. It’s about opening up his game to all new heights. Knee injuries or not, Derrick Rose has a lightning quick first step. If he can put together a consistent mid range game, the rest of the NBA can call NBA commissioner Adam Silver and say that this dude is unfair to the NBA.
Going deeper into this subject, that does not mean running at top speed and shooting pull up jumpers. In this past campaign D-Rose used the pull up jumper to score an absurd 1/3 of the shots he took. That’s not a good look no matter who you are. According to SportVU, the better pull up shooters shoot in the mid to high 40 percent range. Derrick Rose shot 9.7 percent. I’ve always said if shooter shoot less than 4o percent they stink. How about less than 10 percent? Ugh!
Now Derrick Rose has to adapt to the fact the knees are weaker than they were three years ago. If Derrick Rose uses the angles on the basketball court while using his teammates as potential weapons in the offense, it will take the heat off him working so hard to get shots. His body may have changed but those double teams he faces on a nightly basis won’t.
3) Be patient.
This is a make or miss league. This is a league were adjustments are a must. We ALL including Rose have to be patient. I say it all the time, anyone can shoot in an empty gym. It’s a little different when you have to play defense, rebound run the offense AND score. This will probably take half the season for Derrick Rose to get acclimated to the NBA game after these injuries, so everyone chill.
It’ll be all right.
Editors Note:
Now that I have stated my opinions on this subject, I do want to say this. When you do send comments, keep them classy. Let’s not get personal. We here at Pippen Ain’t Easy put together this website for Chicago Bulls fans to state their opinions in a way so they can have fun and most importantly learn about the game of basketball. It’s a Chicago Bulls fan site but not in the way a lot of other sites are. Pippen Ain’t Easy is going to keep it real with credible and knowledgeable information that you can use when your Bulls are on the court. I want everyone to have a good time debating issues about the Bulls, not fighting. Believe me you are always not going to agree with me. That’s what makes this website unique.