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Chicago Bulls: Current Struggles Could Lead to Derrick Rose’s Departure

By Gabriel Gonzalez

Jan 31, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose (1) runs on the court during the second quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 31, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose (1) runs on the court during the second quarter against the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /
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With the Chicago Bulls on the verge of missing the playoffs this season, Derrick Rose‘s future is suddenly becoming more a question

The Chicago Bulls looked, in front of the entire NBA Audience, like a sure NBA Championship contender on opening night this season. Victorious in a wire-to-wire game over last year’s Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers and competing with a proven roster, the Bulls look primed to make another run.

A big part of that was Derrick Rose. After having been out for (roughly) two years with knee injuries, the 2011 NBA MVP had just completed a full season and looked good considering that his promising career seemed to be possibly be over.

In last year’s playoffs against the Cavaliers, Rose hit the game-winning three-pointer in Game 3 that restored balance in the basketball universe. After everything he fought through, in terms of injuries, Rose – and the Chicago Bulls – were finally back. Or so it seemed. The Bulls had their star back, and they looked finally ready to topple LeBron James from his throne atop of the Eastern Conference.

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Things have not gone as expected since then. As a result, the end of this season could be the writing on the wall for Rose’s departure from Chicago.

Starting in the summer of last year, head coach Tom Thibodeau was released from his coaching duties and replaced by rookie coach Fred Hoiberg. As a result, the team lost the defensive identity that had kept them afloat in Rose’s absence.

Changes to the roster have also had an impact on the squad. Big men Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah struggled to maximize their output when on the floor together. Noah also suffered a season-ending injury before the NBA All-Star break, which all but ends his time with the Bulls. He’s a free agent this summer.

Rose has also essentially seen himself upstaged by the younger and healthier Jimmy Butler. In the time that Rose has been absent, Butler has emerged to become the biggest threat on the Bulls roster and is considered by many to be the best two-way player in the league.

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At 27 years old and with multiple knee procedures on his body, Rose’s next contract is likely to be the most crucial one of his career.

The main factor that may keep him from staying in Chicago is that essentially the team has spent the last few years moving on from him instead of awaiting his return.

Fans eagerly awaited his return in 2013 only to have him go out with an injury before he ever looked like himself again. Essentially, there came the acceptance that they would have to move on without him.

Even when he came back last season, it was Butler often leading the show when Rose struggled (which was more often than not). It can be debated that after so much time without Rose, Butler is now the star of the Chicago Bulls.

It should be noted, in the past two seasons Butler has gained an All-Star nomination while Rose has not. This season in particular, Butler was actually considered to be a snub from the starting lineup.

If Chicago is looking to build a championship contender again, the question is how big of a part does Rose play into the system? If the future is to be built around Butler, does Rose become nothing more than a role player?

Rose’s explosiveness and aggression at the rim is not going to return to the level it was in 2011. For fans of the Bulls, it is understandably bewildering. For example, Russell Westbrook has suffered a similar injury and he continues to take flight with more power than ever despite being the same age as Rose.

If he is not going to carry bargaining power of being a superstar of the league, then his previous talk of looking forward to free agency will likely be given more fuel this summer. Especially considering that the Bulls may look to move him rather than lose him for nothing when his contract expires (in 2017).

Rose may not be able to match the attack of a Westbrook every night. Nor is he about to develop a stroke from the three-point line like Stephen Curry. But he is still a consistent 15+ point player who will put fans in the seats regardless of where he goes.

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The Bulls are currently in 8th place in the East, half of a game ahead of the Detroit Pistons. While a playoff appearance isn’t out of the question with a month of games left to play, one has to wonder if this latest dip is the one that leads to a change of scenery for the former face of the Chicago Bulls, Derrick Rose.

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