Say It Aint So: Why Derrick Rose Is Now Done

 
Right on queue… I have tackled the severity of the association losing some of its most elite talent due to injury. Well, if my article is any indication, then I may have just jinxed the hell out of the entire Chicago Bulls organization. Tuesday night, February 24^th, 2015 marks a day of grave despair. The 3 time all-star Derrick Rose complained to the Bulls’ staff about pain in his right knee — the same knee in which he tore his meniscus in November 2013. A thorough examination and MRI confirmed that he tore his meniscus. This is heartbreaking not only to D-Rose and Chicago fans, but to any avid basketball fan. To see someone as talented, hard working, and humble as Derrick undergo such hardship is gut wrenching.
 
Now I am not a baseball fan, but I am a firm believer in the “3 strikes and you’re out” philosophy. This is Rose’s 3^rd major injury. Back in November 2014 he uttered these discouraging words: “I feel I’ve been managing myself pretty good. I know a lot of people get mad when they see me sit out. But I think a lot of people don’t understand that when I sit out, it’s not because of this year. I’m thinking about long term. I’m thinking about after I’m done with basketball, having graduations to go to, having meetings to go to. I don’t want to be in my meetings all sore or be at my son’s graduation all sore just because of something I did in the past. Just learning and being smart.’’ Sounds to me like D-Rose is considering hanging his signature Adidas up for good.
 
I have to admit to spending some of my free time watching NBA highlight videos and comparing players to see who has the most exhilarating reel. Aside from the usual suspects – LeBron, MJ, and Allen Iverson – Derrick Rose’s highlights from the first 4 years in the league was bar none the most intriguing of them all. His style of play, the fact that he was the most athletic & powerful point guard we’ve ever known (I see you Westbrook) . . . it’s unlike anything we’ve ever witnessed in the game of basketball. With no timetable set for his return, it would be a tragedy not to see D-Rose in the playoffs again, even if he isn’t 100%.
 
After an early Wednesday morning shoot around, the media flocked coach Tom Thibodeau with questions concerning his superstar point guard. “I don’t know what to say other than it’s so unfair, the guy has been through so much. What he has put into it and this one — not that anytime you have surgery it’s not tough — will hopefully be much shorter than the other ones. But the big thing is our concern for him first as a person.” A reporter described the scene of the shoot around as melancholy and more quiet than usual. The youngest MVP in NBA history, and fans will never see his what could have been. Thibodeau is right – it’s unfair. And boy does it f****n’ BLOW.