I'm not feeling high on the prospect of Rose becoming a productive player right now, but I guess that could always change. I thought he looked fresh in the game against the Pacers in which he got injured, but his conditioning has taken a step back. Derrick Rose made some comments about he reacts to injuries the other day: Of course, he's getting panned for saying this on RealGM, because apparently athletes aren't supposed to tell the truth. I find the comments to be some of the more self-aware and sad things Rose has said. There's no denying that he reacts poorly to playing with injuries and that he all too often ends up hurting himself again. His ankle twist against the Pacers looked brutal -- I am actually surprised nothing more came of it. It feels like it could be like this the rest of his career. I know its a new era and everything, but I still haven't forgiven Thibodeau and the Bulls training staff for not making him sit when he was injured. I can't help but feel that this all could have been avoided.
Yeah, Rose appears to be a "100% percenter," that is, a player who has to be just right in order to be effective. Unfortunately, with Hinrich and Brooks hurting also, Rose has to play. Frankly, it's amazing to me how the Bulls team has somehow overcome Rose's awfulness. He may be the worst starting PG in the NBA so far this season.
Gasol has double-double as Bulls beat Nuggets 99-90 Coming off an emotional win two nights earlier, facing the slumping Denver Nuggets had the makings of a trap game for Chicago. Thanks to Pau Gasol, the Bulls came out with another win. Gasol had 26 points and 19 rebounds to lead Chicago to a 99-90 win over the Nuggets on Wednesday night. Gasol shot 12 for 19 from the field and had his fifth consecutive double-double as the Bulls, who beat San Antonio on Monday night, won for the third time in four games and improved to 7-1 at home. Read more http://espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=400828160
Yeah, Rose has said a lot of things that made me cringe.....but this isn't one of them. It comes off as introspective and basically corroborates what we see on the floor, so count me as nonplussed with his words. However, if the issue is purely mental that means there's a good case for optimism. It's better than playing with a broken wheel. At the very least I think it means we might be able to see vintage Derrick in important games.
