Derrick Rose attends practice, close to returning
Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose attended practice on Monday for the first time since his eye injury. The Bulls are hopeful that Rose will be cleared to return to practice this week. Rose had surgery to repair an orbital fracture in his left eye on October 1 and is expected to be back in time for the regular season opener.
Derrick Rose was back with his teammates and coaches at the Bulls facility and it was a pleasant sight for everyone to see. Besides coach Fred Hoiberg, who visited Derrick at his house to go over plays, no one had seen Rose since he got elbowed in his eye.
The arrival of Rose certainly lifted the spirits of everyone.
“Since the first day of practice I haven’t seen him at all,” said forward Doug McDermott. “It’s good to see him back and in the facility. He looks great and we’re looking forward to getting him back.”
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Rose’s eye was still visibly swollen according to Hoiberg, who also said Rose still had blurry vision. Having him in the building and watching practice is a good thing for now so that he can get familiar with the offensive sets. The Bulls can’t wait for Rose to get back on the floor and play in the new offense.
It is just preseason, but the Bulls offense is playing fast and has more fluidity. The Bulls have a chance to have a high scoring offense this year, but will need a healthy Rose to be the igniter. His speed and explosion make him one of the leagues best players, and he’s finally in an offense that suits his game.
The good news is that Rose won’t be limited physically when he comes back since it wasn’t a lower body injury. He’s only been out for 2 weeks so his wind and conditioning can’t be that bad. The swelling in his eye however hasn’t reduced much and that is a minor concern.
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Assuming he his cleared to return this week, Rose will likely only be able to run and do non contact drills. The swelling in his eye needs to go down some more for him to start fully practicing. Since Rose is an elite athlete, he should be able to get his conditioning back quickly.
It is unknown if Rose will play in any preseason games.
Rose should have an easy transition into the offense and shouldn’t have much rust on him. He was able to play basketball during the off-season instead of rehabbing an injury for the first time since the summer of 2011.
The timing of his eye injury was unfortunate but Rose has a high basketball IQ. He will learn the new offense quickly and execute it once he returns.
Plugging in Rose into the offense will be easy for Hoiberg. Rose is elite when he is attacking the paint and pushing the ball at a rapid pace, something this offense is predicated on. It should be a fun year for the Bulls assuming everyone is healthy.
The offense is more fluid under Hoiberg, allowing the players to play more freely and most of all, have fun. It seemed like the Bulls were never having fun on the court when Tom Thibodeau was coach, probably because he was screaming at them the entire game. It is a new era with the Bulls and Hoiberg is making basketball fun again for the Bulls.
Having Rose back with the team is a good sign of things to come. Getting him cleared by the doctors is the next step in his return to the court. The Bulls are anxious to get him back and see what he can do in the new offensive system.