Bulls Game No. 41: “The Derrick Rose Show” films in Beantown

Derrick Rose has had a handful of games that have made you say, “Oh yeah, he’s back.” Out of those four or five games, his performance on Friday night in Boston may have been his best games of the season.

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What more could the Chicago Bulls fan base ask from Derrick Rose on Friday night?

The youngest MVP in NBA history did just about everything for the Bulls (27-14) in their 16-point victory over the Boston Celtics.

In 33 minutes of action, Rose scored a game-high 29 points on 12-of-20 shooting, to go along with 10 assists for his second double-double of the season.

"“I thought the energy was great, probably one of the best games we’ve played,” Thibodeau said. “I thought Derrick was great on both sides of the ball and that’s huge for us. I thought Jimmy stepped up and had a terrific game, Pau was great, and our bench was terrific.”-Tom Thibodeau on his team’s bounce-back victory, CSNChicago.com"

Thibodeau nailed all four aspects that contributed to the Bulls’ win on Friday.

• Rose was sensational (plenty more on him in a few…)

• After a rough nine-game span, Jimmy Butler scored 22 points on 10-of-19 shooting, racked up six steals and grabbed five rebounds.

• Pau Gasol continued his All-Star push with a 20-point, 11-rebound performance. (Only three players have more double-doubles than Gasol’s 22.)

• The Bulls bench rotation of Aaron Brooks, E’Twaun Moore and Nikola Mirotic scored 29 points combined and hit six total three-pointers.

But, the Bulls superstar point guard was the topic of discussion after the victory.

“The Derrick Rose Show”: Episode 1 – Poohdini

Derrick Rose’s nickname growing up was “Pooh”, thanks to his grandmother.

The “-dini” came after Rose’s magic began to develop on the hardwood growing up in Chicago with highlight-reel plays on a nightly basis.

“Poohdini” made quite an appearance early on during Friday’s game with this ridiculous lay-in off a steal in transition. Yeah, it was that kind of night for No. 1.

“The Derrick Rose Show”: Episode 2 – Magic Rose

Magic Johnson approves this vine.

Not many players in the NBA are more fun in transition than a healthy Derrick Rose.

“The Derrick Rose Show”: Episode 3 – The “Rose Runner”

Personally, one of my favorite cartoons as a kid was “Wile E. Coyote and The Road Runner”.

One of my favorite plays from the Bulls offensively? Derrick Rose’s runners in the lane. It’s almost unstoppable. Don’t believe me? Ask Celtics center Tyler Zeller.

“The Derrick Rose Show”: Episode 4 – Welcome to the NBA, Marcus Smart

Trying to guard a healthy Derrick Rose one-on-one is like paying taxes … it’s just not any fun.

Talented rookie Marcus Smart found that out during the second half on Friday night, as Rose hit him with a nasty right-to-left crossover and finished through contact for the bucket.

Good try, Marcus.

(Poor Marcus couldn’t even get Rose back offensively.)

Thoughts + what’s next for the Bulls

Rose was a joy to watch on Friday night. Sure, the jumpers from the perimeter were falling, but when Rose attacked, he was unstoppable … and when No. 1’s doing that, the Bulls are much, much better.

The defense is still a major concern — 103 points to Boston? — but the Bulls did what they had to do and that’s pick up a win against a team they should beat.

Another concern: What are the statuses of Joakim Noah and Mike Dunleavy, Jr.? Noah missed Friday’s game with a sprained ankle that he suffered on Wednesday night in the loss to Washington. Dunleavy has not played since New Year’s Day vs. Denver and has missed eight straight games with a sprained ankle.

Although the Bulls have plenty of work to do and with teams like Toronto, Washington and Atlanta (who the Bulls play on Saturday night) are playing extremely well, the Bulls just might be the best of the four teams when they are completely healthy.

Next up for the Bulls (27-14): Home vs. Atlanta (32-8), 7:00 PM CT, 1/17

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Next: Bulls Game No. 40: The good, bad and the ugly from loss to the Wiz