Derrick Rose went down with a hamstring injury late in the fourth quarter of Chicago’s win over the Raptors on Thursday, and anytime that happens, the floodgates open with choruses of “here we go again” from those skeptical that Rose will ever be able to remain fully healthy for extended stretches again.
But his teammates have his back, and Tom Thibodeau isn’t about to rush his star into a return to action a moment before he’s ready.
Rose will miss his fifth game of the young season on Saturday when the Bulls host the Pacers.
From Mike Singer of CSN Chicago:“He needs a little time, it’s not anything … he said he’s feeling a lot better today, doing more. So we’re just gonna work our way through it,” Thibodeau said. Rose was relegated to a stationary bicycle and a treadmill on Friday.
Saturday’s game will be the fifth Rose has missed out of Chicago’s first ten games (7-2), and Thibodeau said that that’s not unexpected given that Rose has missed nearly all of the past two seasons.
“He was out for two and a half years. You’re coming back, you’re playing in a physical game. There’s gonna be some times when he gets banged up a little bit,” Thibodeau said. “When you’re out that long, you’re not used to that. Same thing [with the] hamstring.”
Rose said the issue was minor, and the fact that he feels better is encouraging.
And, considering that the Bulls are 7-2 to this point in the season, they’ll happily play without him until he’s much closer to 100 percent.
