A Coming Out Party For Derrick Rose?
October 22nd, 2008 at 9:37 amBy Chris
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Were Chicago Bulls fans provided a glimpse of things to come from overall number one pick Derrick Rose or was he simply the benefit of garbage time play in a meaningless preseason game? Rose put on a show in the fourth quarter against the Mavericks last night, scoring 14 of his (preseason) career-high 30 points, while handing out five of his seven assists.
We, of course, have the highlight reel of Rose’s big night. What it shows is the guard’s creativity with the ball, be it when he’s trying to score or set his teammates up. The video also does a good job in demonstrating just how tough a cover Rose will be on a night-in, night-out basis. His quickness, speed and strength will make him a handful for other point guards to contain.
The biggest news, at least to me, was how efficiently Rose shot the ball. He finished the game going 13-18 from the field. If that’s a sign of things to come, it will be hard to keep Rose from collecting the Rookie of the Year trophy next spring. It’s obvious the Bulls want Rose to be full of confidence when the season starts, hence Vinny Del Negro’s decision to turn the team over to his guard when the game was in the balance:
“We just opened the floor for him,” Del Negro said. “He’s so athletic and can break guys down off the dribble. We just said run the team and have players run the lanes and have some fun.”
Considering the success he had freelancing last night, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Bulls continue to run their offense this way as Rose gets more and more comfortable in his role.
