What is going on between Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler

The relationship between Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler has been in question ever since the Bulls playoff run ended in May. There were rumors over the summer that the dynamic back court was having trouble coexisting on the court and that they weren’t getting along. Both players denied the rift and stated that their relationship was good and healthy at media day. Now, there’s a new report that the two players will have to answer too. 

Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-times is reporting that Butler has a problem with Rose and his work ethic. Cowley said that he spoke to a former member of the Bulls by phone, who detailed some insight into the relationship between Rose and Butler.

The source said that Butler and Rose are friends off the court but that Butler doesn’t respect the effort and work that Rose puts in.

More from Chicago Bulls

• Chicago Bulls’ winning ways proves Billy Donovan’s system works
• Chicago Bulls News: Coby White is that dude
• Chicago Bulls’ recent success means big trades make sense
• The Chicago Bulls seem to have a major Zach LaVine problem.
• No Zach, no DeMar, no problem? Chicago Bulls stun the Bucks in OT

The source went on to say: “In Butler’s mind, Rose was considered the face of the franchise, and if the face of the franchise wasn’t busting his butt in practice every day, especially last season, what was the message to the rest of the team?”

If you’re a Bulls fan, take this report with a grain of salt. Throughout his career at the Chicago Sun-times, Cowley has been known to exaggerate stories, and his credibility within the NBA source group is low.

Chicago Bulls teammates and coaches have never criticized Rose or his work ethic because they see the hard work he puts in everyday and have watched him come back from tough injuries.

After 3 knee surgeries, Rose is still standing, and while he’s not the same player that he once was, he still averaged 20 points per game in the playoffs and showed a burst in his step.

Who else in NBA history has come back from crazy injuries that Rose has gone through, and still demonstrate quickness and explosion?

Sure, Rose is not as consistent as he used to be, but who will be after missing 2 years of playing?

Live Feed

Betsided

It is easy to jump on the bandwagon of bashing Rose for his play and comments, but only true Bulls fans know that Rose wants nothing more than to win a title for his hometown, and that he won’t stop at anything to win it.

However many injuries he has to go through, Rose will always come back from it and push through.

It is clear that Butler thinks of himself as a superstar now after signing a max contract. He has taken his game and leadership qualities to another level and that is a good sign for the Bulls.

He has to remember though that the Bulls are not going anywhere in the playoffs unless Rose is healthy and playing. Butler needs to prove that he can attract double teams on a consistent basis to free up teammates, something that Rose does on a nightly basis.

Butler has every right to be upset if Rose is healthy and not working hard in practice like everyone else, but if Rose is healthy, its doubtful that he wouldn’t be out there playing. No one has ever questioned Roses work ethic in the past, so it coming up now before the season starts is puzzling.

Rose and Butler off the court get along fine, and also share the same best friend, so there are a lot of connections between the two. Their chemistry on the court needs work and will be crucial to the Bulls success.

Rose needs to adjust his game now that he finally has another scorer to play with. Rose has no problem with Butler becoming a star because he knows it will benefit himself and the team as a whole.

They don’t need to be best friends, they just have to play well with each other and win games for the Bulls.

Butler has stated that he wants to take another leap this season and be a vocal leader for the team. Rose is naturally a quiet person and leads by example through his play, so having Butler be more vocal is a good thing.

Rose has missed so many games over the past couple seasons, while Butler has become an all-star. So naturally there might be some disagreements between the two since they haven’t played with each other that much.

The Bulls went 28-17 when Rose and Butler played last season. Both averaged 20 ppg in the playoffs, so whatever reported feud there is, it’s clearly not affecting their production on the floor.

For some reason, the national and Chicago media has turned on Rose, because it’s the easy thing to do now.

Someone who comes back from an ACL tear and 2 meniscus tears is a hard worker and is determined to achieve a goal.

Here’s hoping that Rose, Butler and the rest of the team uses this new report as more fuel to win a ring.