What a great way to begin my blogging career here at
4thQuarterHoops by showcasing the highlights of my favorite NBA player Derrick
Rose. If you are a fan of Rose or the Bulls then you know that this has been a
very long time coming but the wait is finally over! ##THERETURNISHERE## Like
many people I was dismayed at the fact that he didn’t ##RETURN## last season
after undergoing a successful ACL surgery. However, I unlike most pundits didn’t
compare his return to Adrian Peterson’s amazing exploits in the NFL. I was
waiting and waiting and I thought after the Bulls defeated the Brooklyn Nets
during the first round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs that Rose was definitely going
to play against their arch-nemesis the Miami Heat.
There were so many things said in the media coming from his
camp and the Bulls GM that made me think that they weren’t on the same page.
What bothered me most regarding his comeback timetable” was that he hinted that
it was up to “God” basically telling him when he was able to return to action.
Also when he stated that he’s not coming back until he was 110% I was livid
over that statement. I saw him working
out before game, I saw him dunking, I saw his improved shooting mechanics and I
even saw him explode off the ball. But that's in the past; it’s of no
consequence today and has no bearing on his future. Now we finally get to see
the player whom I regard as pound-for-pound the best player /athlete in the
NBA.
The question was would he still be able to showcase his Jordan-like forays to the basket,
would he still be able to blow by defenders off the dribble like Iverson and weave through defenders with those supreme fast-twitch fibers on display like a prime Vick. Prior to the game Rose stated that the main
reason he didn’t return during last year’s playoffs was that he knew that he
was capable of blowing by one defender but not two, which is important given
the type of defense that teams would try to attack him with. Once he was able to get past two defenders he
knew he was ready thus the anticipation for his first pre-season game was of
epic proportions. Watching him play on Saturday night it was as if he had never
left! Everything was there minus his timing and the absence of his jump shot
but those things will come.
When he drove to the rack against Roy Hibbert
(who saw massive gains during the summer and is now reportedly 295 pounds ) and
attacked his frame, missed the shot then out muscled the rest of the Pacers’ front court for a put back rebound I knew he was back. From
then on he made the same type of plays which lead him to become the youngest
MVP in NBA history. I didn’t expect him to play that hard and the game was
played with an almost playoff like atmosphere. That’s how much pressure Rose
puts on the NBA defenses. Rose like any other NBA player could injure himself
again but barring that happening I think he will prove all doubters especially those
at ESPN, CBSsports and Sports Illustrated who all have him ranked outside the
top 10 in their annual list of the top 100 wrong. Derrick Rose is back and that
is a major problem for the NBA.
