Imrem: Rose plays and stays, so that's a win for Bulls

A Bulls fan's drill is pretty clear on game nights now.

Opening tip: Inhale.

Final buzzer: Exhale.

In between: Hold breath, cross fingers, mutter prayers, make wishes, knock on wood and rub rabbits' feet.

Most of all, hope that Derrick Rose finishes the evening upright.

The mission was accomplished Wednesday night when Rose returned from his latest knee surgery after 20 games and two days short of six weeks.

Fortunately for the Bulls, winning wasn't everything on this night because the Magic beat them 105-103 in Orlando.

Unless Rose comes up lame overnight, the Bulls won anyway because he remained in one piece.

Keeping Rose that way contributed to the Magic victory.

Speculation was that Rose would be limited to 20 minutes. He was at 19:24 midway through the third quarter and didn't play the rest of the way.

Maybe the outcome would have been different if Rose were available at closing time. Maybe not, considering that the Bulls were a minus-3 with him on the court.

This was a game that the Bulls cared about winning. It was important to playoff positioning, and the loss dropped them from third to fourth in NBA East.

More important was that Rose didn't go down in a heap and require a fourth knee surgery.

Some of us might have thought that Rose would pull another of his deals where he defies medical clearance and takes a few extra months off.

Not this time. Word circulated Tuesday that Rose would play the following night against the Magic.

Nothing happened to Rose in the interim - not even a turned ankle stepping off a curb - so there he was in uniform and ready to go.

Or there he was, in uniform going ready or not.

The headline wouldn't be how Rose played. It would be that he played, period, making the Bulls' starting lineup intact for only the 20th time in 78 games this season.

The Bulls introduced themselves to each other - Rose, Jimmy Butler, Joakim Noah, Pau Gasol, Mike Dunleavy - and proceeded to lose to a team that's now 25-53.

The Bulls didn't play particularly well with Rose or without Rose.

Yes, the game was important for positioning in the playoff race. No, it wasn't more important than positioning Rose for the postseason.

For the record, Rose scored 9 points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field, including 1 of 6 from 3-point range.

If a quibble is in order it's that too often Rose settled for long jumpers instead of midrange shots and drives to the basket.

But Rose moved well enough to be optimistic that this time his knees really are recovered.

Rose needs to build stamina along with his minutes during the Bulls' four remaining regular-season games.

While Rose plays himself into game shape, Tom Thibodeau will have to juggle minutes and experiment with lineup combinations.

"Now we have guys back," the Bulls' coach said, "and we have to see what we can do."

Continuity and chemistry are concerns considering that the Bulls didn't have Rose since Feb. 27.

After a few more games, winning will take precedent over preserving their point guard and every other core player.

But Wednesday night in Orlando into next week, keeping Derrick Rose healthy is Priority 1.

Inhale, exhale and keep those fingers crossed, Bulls fans.

mimrem@dailyherald.com