Will Derrick Rose Keep His Face Mask Off For Rest Of Season With Chicago Bulls?
Chicago Bulls PG Derrick Rose showed up for shootaround on Saturday without his face mask, and he was also sporting a new haircut. He wasn’t the main reason that the Bulls beat the New Orleans Pelicans, but he was certainly one of the most interesting sights out on the court.
Pau Gasol and Aaron Brooks were the ones who helped Chicago get another win, and this was quite lucky for them on Saturday because they were trailing for the majority of the evening. Brooks was particularly clutch in the fourth quarter; he recorded 15 out of his 17 total points during the final period of Chicago’s 98-94 victory. Gasol added 18, but it was the bench that really pushed the Bulls to a win here. The reserves totaled for 52 points, and this definitely pleased their head coach.
“That second group’s movement, pace – that’s how we want to play,” Fred Hoiberg said to NBA.com. “They were having fun out there. It was just such a grind-out, slow-motion-type of a game, and we finally got a little energy injected out there. They were moving. It was fun to watch. It’s fun to sit there and see it as opposed to going down and moseying into our offense.”
Anthony Davis scored 22 points for the 6-17 Pelicans in his homecoming, but it wasn’t enough to get a win. He scored three points on an and-one to tie the game 94-94, but consecutive buckets by Brooks and Rose completed the victory for Chicago. The Pelicans were coming off of a back-to-back against Washington, so it is understandable that they were a bit winded in the fourth, and the Bulls took full advantage of this.
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Joakim Noah had a solid game, and it appears he is finally settling into his bench role. He recorded 10 points (a season-high for him), nine rebounds and four blocks.
“Jo made all the difference with his energy,” Hoiberg said. “During the play when he drove around Davis and dunked it, I thought he was going to run into the crowd and chest-bump people.”
That dunk put the Bulls up 75-71, and it was one of the first times you truly felt Chicago could win the game. Rose said that he was happy to have the mask off, and it looks like he’ll probably keep it in the locker for the rest of this season.
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Derrick finished with a pedestrian nine points, three rebounds and three assists in a little under 29 minutes of play, but he also only recorded one turnover. He’ll need to step up his game from this on most nights for the Bulls to win; however, it is always nice to have a point guard like Brooks coming off of the bench for you. Aaron shared the floor with Rose for part of the fourth quarter, and this was a combination that helped Chicago achieve victory. Up next for the Bulls is what should be a guaranteed W against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday, but if I was gambling then this would probably be my trap game of the week.