A Rose Blooms in Chicago

Two weeks into the season and the Bulls are about as murky a team as any in the NBA. Winning some games against good teams by large margins and then letting leads slip away in the fourth quarter to other teams. Through all this fog one thing appears to be very clear. The Bulls finally, after 10 years, seem to have a real star on there hands. Yes, Elton Brand was great, but he is not the caliber of player that leads a team to new heights. The Bulls have not had a player that looks as good as Derrick Rose since you know who. Let's take a closer look at this Bulls rookie and see what makes him so special to a fan like me.

For the first time in a long time the Bulls have a player that looks like a winner. He is not just a great individual who does a lot of things well, he is a player that makes the players around him better. His insane speed causes countless problems for other teams. He is a great ball handler already. Most rookies looks shaky at best when they step onto the big stage called the NBA for the first time, but Rose looks like a savvy veteran already. He is by far the most consistent Bulls player right now. His assist numbers would be much better if his teammates could knock down their shots.

Let's look at his numbers for each game so far

• Game 1) 11 points, 4 rebounds, 9 assists, and 3 steals
• Game 2) 18 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal.
• Game 3) 26 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists.
• Game 4) 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist.
• Game 5) 20 points, 7 assists, and 1 steal.
• Game 6) 18 points, 4 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals
• Game 7) 17 points, 5 rebounds, 9 assists, and 1 steal.

Now, it should be noted that he is shooting over 45% from the floor. I understand that these stat lines are not superstar level by any means, but they are quite impressive for a rookie players first 7 games. The key is consistency here. Rose looks to be going against the common thought process that a rookie will have his ups and downs. I think after just 14 days we have a good idea what to expect from Derrick. That is a rarity for a rookie, let alone a point guard rookie.

I am not an idiot who thinks that Rose will not have bad games this season, nor am I saying that he is a lock for ROY or a spot on the Allstar team. What I am saying is he looks quite good and he is only going to get better, and if the rest of the Bulls can feed off his energy and start hitting their shots then Rose will blossom into a star in this league much sooner then most people thought he would. That includes me. In my very own Bulls season preview Blog a month ago I had him averaging 8 points and 4 assists with Kirk Hinrich the starter for the whole season. I just could not see a rookie point guard making an impact so soon.

Before I let you go I will leave you with a few more stats to ponder.
These are the rookie stats of a few of this leagues recent great point guards. I am not saying for sure he will ever reach these players level, but it is still interesting:

Derrick Rose - 17.7 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 5.1 apg, 1.1 spg, .458 FG%, in 37 min. a game.
Chris Paul - 16.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 7.8 apg, 2.2 apg, .430 FG%, in 36 min. a game.
Deron Williams - 10.8 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 4.5 apg, 0.8 spg, .421 FG%, in 29 min. a game.

Written By ChiTownCliff,
CBS Spoortsline community member