Derrick Rose Should Look to Attack Much More This Season

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The headline is obvious, but watching Derrick Rose against the Detroit Pistons should be another obvious sign that he needs to look to get into the painted area much more moving forward.


In the Chicago Bulls‘ four-overtime loss to the Detroit Pistons on Dec. 18, Derrick Rose made 14 of the 34 shots he took from the field in the chaotic 147-144 loss for the Bulls.

Out of those 34 shot attempts for Rose, 17 of those shots came at the rim, nine came in or around the paint and just three came from beyond the arc.

It’s quite easy to see what Derrick Rose needs to do for the Bulls to find success offensively: drive at will.

Before Monday’s game with Brooklyn, Rose has shot an abysmal 37.5 percent from the floor for the season. He had the vision issues early on after orbital bone surgery and missed a pair of games with a sore ankle, but the numbers tell the whole story.

Rose has been bad this season.

Even at the rim.

I know what you’re thinking: Derrick Rose’s shot chart is more festive than your house during the holiday season.

But, there’s some encouraging signs for Rose based off his performance against Detroit and the numbers alone.

Not only was Rose taking a bulk of his shot attempts in the lane, he was playing with more pace; something that will make Fred Hoiberg happy in the long run.

Hoiberg’s biggest issue with Rose so far this season has been — in his eyes — Rose not playing with the right pace to make the offense work.

An example of Rose playing faster (and smarter) was this layup against the Pistons.

Not only did Rose go right past Anthony Tolliver for the bucket, he got the ball past the timeline quickly, made a quick decision in taking the screen from Taj Gibson and did what he does best.

So far this season, 46.3 percent of Rose’s shot attempts have been inside of 10 feet.

Related Story: Jimmy Butler's Critical Assessment of Fred Hoiberg, Bulls

That’s good.

The drive from the Detroit game are the kinds of plays that Rose can make on a nightly basis and rejuvenate his own season. The Bulls have their own issues as a whole and Rose’s offensive game has been one of those focal points in the struggles.

Rose’s shot chart should look more like this:

This chart is from Rose’s 29-point performance against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 5. The Bulls busted out their awesome, cursive throwback jerseys and Rose exploded for his best game of the season.

The takeaway is the painted area.

Rose took 17 of his 25 shots in or around the paint, making 11 attempts in the win for the Bulls.

When Derrick Rose is looking to get into the lane and hitting shots at an efficient rate, the Bulls will find more answers for their struggles on the offensive end this season.

If teams begin to collapse hard on Rose’s drives, those seven assists per game Rose was speaking about at Media Day may come to fruition.

Rose makes those whip passes to Pau Gasol in his sleep.

Rose isn’t the same player he was prior to the three knee surgeries. That’s clear.

But, he still has the uncanny ability to make defenses pay in the paint if he can get there.

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During the Detroit game, Comcast SportsNet Chicago sideline reporter Chuck Garfien mentioned that Rose will continue to “play his game”, he “won’t look to attack more” and “he’ll take what the defense gives him”.

Attacking the lane is your game, Derrick.

(Charts and numbers via NBA.com/stats, Vines via Gustavo Vega)