Chicago Bulls star Derrick Rose returned to the lineup against the Utah Jazz on Monday night after missing the last four games with a strained hamstring. Rose had 18 points on 5-of-10 shooting in 25 minutes of action, and he also added five assists in a 97-95 Bulls victory.
Of course Tom Thibodeau is frustrated with Derrick Rose’s injury situation
That’s different than saying Thibodeau is frustrated with Rose himself, though.
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After two ugly losses, Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau had to be thrilled to have his best player back in the lineup. Thibodeau must be frustrated with Rose's on-again, off-again health status, and some of that boiled over after the game. When the coach was asked about the point guard possibly looking fatigued late in the contest, he reiterated several times that Rose just has to get out there and play in order to find a rhythm, according to ESPN Chicago's Nick Friedell:
“Oh I don’t know. Jesus. He’s got to get out there and play,” Thibodeau said. “I thought he did a lot of good things. You could see he’s not real comfortable with the ball yet, but that will come. When Derrick strings some games together, he’s going to take off. He’s got to go. That’s the bottom line. He’s got to go.”
Rose has already missed eight of 14 games this season due to a strained hamstring as well as two sprained ankles. Rose and the Bulls are being extremely cautious with his health after two consecutive major knee injuries, and the point guard came under some fire when he said he was thinking about life after basketball when he chooses to sit out some games in order to heal up more.
What We Learned Monday
Some may interpret Thibodeau’s comments as a message to Rose that he’s being too cautious, but the Bulls coach has never been one to publicly call out players, especially Rose. It’s more likely that Thibodeau is simply frustrated by the entire situation. It’s completely understandable to have those feelings when your best player has missed so much time and you’re continually asked the same questions day after day about it.
Ultimately, Thibodeau’s conclusion is 100 percent correct. Rose has to play and string games together in order to fully regain that form from his MVP days. If he continues to go in and out of the lineup, he’ll never be able to find that rhythm and the rust will remain.
While Rose scored 10 points in the first four minutes and posted solid numbers overall, some rust was noticeable. As Thibodeau noted, Rose wasn’t “real comfortable” with the ball, and this was evidenced by four turnovers and a general lack of aggression driving to the basket. The point guard even admitted he wasn’t trying to force the issue too much:
“I wasn’t trying to do too much when I was in there,” Rose said. “They were giving me shots, and I was just trying to take the shots that they were giving me.”
Taking a look at Rose’s shot chart, half of his shots were from behind the three-point line and another three were from mid-range. That means just two came at the rim:
Rose’s eight free throws would seem to signal aggression attacking the basket, but three of those came when he was fouled on a three-pointer and another two came when he put up a shot after corralling a loose ball near the basket.
Rose’s rust was also evident on the defensive end:
Rose's lateral quickness isn't there right now. Much more noticeable on defense.
— Nick Friedell (@NickFriedell) November 25, 2014 All this stuff is natural for a player who has missed so much time the last three years. Again, he needs to play a bunch of games in a row to get comfortable with his body on the court. If and when that happens, expect to see a Rose that looks more like the 2011 MVP. The flashes are certainly still there (via @DawkinsMTA):
The Bulls are miles better with Rose on the court and they can only win a title if he's healthy. The sample size is small thus far, but Chicago has been dominant with Rose on the floor this season. The Bulls have outscored by 14.8 points per 100 possessions in his 164 minutes, per NBA.com, and the starting lineup of Rose, Jimmy Butler, Mike Dunleavy, Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol have outscored opponents by 30.1 points per 100 possessions in 62 minutes.
With the Eastern Conference so wide open and Butler looking like an emerging star, the Bulls have a great opportunity this season given the good health of Rose and others. Pau Gasol had a strong game in his return from a calf injury, while Taj Gibson and Kirk Hinrich are currently on the mend. Once the team is healthy, they may be favorites in the East.
That's a big if, though, and the key will always be Rose. As Thibodeau said repeatedly, "he's gotta go." All parties are hopeful Rose will be ready to play in the second of a back-to-back against the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night.
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