Bulls are Fortunate Derrick Rose’s Sexual Assault Case No Longer Impacts Them

It’s probably a good thing that the Chicago Bulls no longer have to worry about what goes on in Derrick Rose’s personal life.

The Chicago Bulls now have another reason to feel good about trading Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks after new details emerged in his civil sexual assault case this week.

Rose will go to trial on Oct. 4 after a judge denied his petition to dismiss the case ‘Jane Doe’ filed against him in August 2015. Doe alleges that Rose and two of his friends broke into her apartment and raped her while she was unconscious. Rose and his legal team have aggressively denied these claims.

Rose’s case would have caused the Bulls problems if they hadn’t traded the former MVP this past June. A high-profile sexual assault case detracts an athlete from focusing on getting ready for the upcoming season. All the time, energy and emotional strain Rose must put towards defending himself can take away from his development as a basketball player.

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Fellow players must deal with the uncertainty of not knowing what is going to happen with their teammate. In addition, the extra media attention flips the focus from basketball to drama. The media circus that will ensue perpetuates an overall culture that isn’t conducive to winning basketball games.

Furthermore, Rose isn’t the best player to have on a roster for teams concerned about their public image. Rose’s defense team reverted to stereotypical slut-shaming tactics to formulate their defense which will undoubtedly offend people.

Here is the logic Rose’s defense team used for wanting to strip ‘Jane Doe’ of her right to anonymity:

"Of special note, Plaintiff is publicly portraying herself as sexual. The production includes photos from Plaintiff’s Instagram account that are sexual in nature. In these images, Plaintiff is dressed in provocative attire, is in sexually suggestive poses, and is in photographs indicating that she engages in sexually charged encounters with more than one man at a time. Plaintiff’s use of twitter and other forms of social media further belies her apparent desire for anonymity.(Think-Progress.com, Lindsay Gibbs)"

Misogynist speech has laced Rose’s own testimony as well. Here is Rose’s reasoning for going to ‘Jane Doe’s’ house in the middle of the night.

"I said we men. You can assume. Like we leaving to go over to someone’s house at 1:00, there’s nothing to talk about.(Think-Progress.com, Lindsay Gibbs)"

In a progressive society, organizations don’t want to associate themselves with comments that have major sexist undertones. People can interpret Rose’s defense as propagating rape culture and that is a major issue.

Finally, the timing of Rose’s trial will likely conflict with training camp and possibly the beginning of the preseason. This is an issue for any team with Rose on their roster.

In order to get a better grasp of new head coach Fred Hoiberg’s offensive system, the Bulls need to utilize training camp and preseason games as an opportunity to develop team chemistry. This wouldn’t have been possible for Rose if he had remained with the Bulls.

This is a civil case. If it is determined he is liable for the damages incurred by the victim, he will provide monetary compensation to the victim, but won’t receive a criminal punishment.

However, according to Sports Illustrated writer Michael McCann, his new team or the NBA league office could still punish him.

"The Knicks, for instance, could suspend Rose for conduct detrimental to the team. Alternatively, NBA commissioner Adam Silver could invoke Article 35 of the NBA constitution and suspend Rose for “conduct that does not conform to standards of morality or fair play, that does not comply at all times with all federal, state, and local laws, or that is prejudicial or detrimental to the NBA."

Rose needs to play in order to be effective. If the trial keeps him from playing or prevents him from attending training camp, that is a huge problem for the Knicks, which the Bulls have avoided.

From the perspective of the Chicago Bulls organization, the recent news about Rose’s sexual assault trial gives the team more reasons to feel good about trading him this summer. His on-court fit with the team remained in question. The drama associated with his recent brush with the law makes him an unneeded distraction.

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The testimony he has given reveals him in a light that likely runs counter to the image the Bulls organization would like to convey to the public.

This article isn’t meant to incriminate Derrick Rose, nor will I pass judgement on whether he is guilty or innocent of sexually assaulting a woman. Under a different set of circumstances, the Chicago Bulls still having Derrick Rose would be an ideal situation.

As a huge Derrick Rose fan, I hope he proves his innocence in the trial. However, with the context of his off the court issues in mind, it was definitely time for the Chicago Bulls to part ways with the former MVP.

In light of the emerging details in Rose’s trial, I will retract my previous claim that Derrick Rose will be the player the Bulls will regret not keeping the most next season. I wrote this article before media outlets released new details about Rose’s case.

The opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of anybody at FanSided.com.