On this day 10 years ago, the Chicago Bulls drafted Derrick Rose with the number one overall pick.
The Chicago Bulls had a 1.7 percent chance of winning the 2008 NBA Lottery. They were slotted to get the ninth pick in the lottery. The Bulls luck was on their side as they won the lottery and had the number one pick in the 2008 NBA draft. The rest was history.
Derrick Rose was born and raised in Chicago, and went to Simeon Career Academy. Entering his senior year at Simeon, Sports Illustrated ranked Rose as the fifth best prospect in the nation. Rose finished his senior year averaging 25.2 points, 8.8 rebounds, 9.1 assists, and 3.4 steals per game. Derrick Rose’s record at Simeon was 120-12. He was named Illinois Mr. Basketball and was selected to the McDonald’s All-American team. In 2009, he was named the decades third greatest high school point guard by ESPN Rise.
Derrick Rose went on to play college basketball at the University of Memphis. He averaged 14.9 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 4.7 assists per game. Rose scored 20 or more points in nine games for the Tigers. He finished as a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award as well as the John R. Wooden Award. Memphis finished the season that year with a record of 38–2. Derrick was named to the All-Final Four team.
Rose went on to make history in the NBA
On April 15, 2008, Derrick Rose announced that he has declared for the 2008 NBA draft. With the first pick in the 2008 NBA draft, the Chicago Bulls selected Derrick Rose.
In his rookie year in the NBA, Derrick Rose averaged 16.8 points, and 6.3 assists per game. He played in 81 games in his first season. Rose was voted NBA Rookie of the Year, and was named 2009 NBA All-Rookie first team. Among all NBA rookies in the 2008-09 season, Derrick was ranked 1st in assists, and 2nd in scoring.
Every season Derrick Rose got better and better. He was voted the 2010-2011 NBA Most Valuable Player, and became the youngest player ever to be named league MVP.
DRose... Never forget https://t.co/0uTtfI2gk6
— Damian Lillard (@Dame_Lillard) June 14, 2017
Injuries
The Chicago Bulls played the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the 2011-2012 playoffs. In the fourth quarter, Derrick Rose tore the ACL in his left knee and not only missed the rest of the playoffs, but also the entire 2012-2013 season.
That night you can just feel the energy in the United Center just turn into sadness. Bulls fans had a hard time going to sleep that night. The guy who was from Chicago, and made Chicago Bulls basketball fun again tore his ACL. A lot of fans became Bulls fans because of Derrick Rose. From that point on everything changed for the organization.
Feel so bad for Drose. One of the most genuine superstars out there, even better person...
— 🏁 Jamal Crawford (@JCrossover) February 25, 2015
On November 22nd, 2013, Derrick Rose played in his 10th regular season game after coming back from a torn ACL. That night, Rose suffered a torn meniscus in his right knee that cost him to miss the remainder of the season. Nothing was going right for Derrick. He went on to play seven seasons for the Chicago Bulls. On June 22nd, 2016 the Chicago Bulls traded Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks.
In his seven seasons with the Chicago Bulls, Derrick Rose averaged 19.7 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.7 rebounds. During those seven seasons, Rose suffered 16 different injuries that made him miss games.
Next: Too many people are sleeping on Kris Dunn
Derrick may go down as one of the unluckiest men to ever play in the NBA. Despite the injuries, one thing for sure is that Derrick Rose will always be loved by Bulls fans. During his time with the Chicago Bulls, Rose brought a lot of joy to fans and those memories will never be forgotten.