Bulls' Rose has plan for road stretch ahead

Ready to embark on the infamous circus road trip for the first time, Bulls guard Derrick Rose already has his itinerary planned out.

It goes a little like this: Get rest, order room service, watch movies, catch bus to the arena.

"Usually, I don't even go out to eat (on the road)," Rose said Monday at the Berto Center. "I get room service. I don't really see anybody, but I think in L.A. my agency is based out of there, so I might see Arn Tellem and his family.

"Other than that, I just stay in my room all the time and order room service and watch movies all day."

Actually, teammate Ben Gordon believes Rose forgot to mention another potential time filler.

"I'm sure he'll be able to find some video games and stuff to play," Gordon said. "I know he loves to play video games."

Rose's plan should keep him out of trouble, but it doesn't figure to help the nation's troubled economy very much, unless he leaves an enormous tip for the room-service waiter. He also mentioned that his brother Reggie and a friend are going to all of the away games.

In Rose's mind, anyway, this trip is all about trying to collect some wins to bring home. It won't be easy, since the journey begins tonight at the Staples Center against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Next comes visits to Portland, Golden State, Denver, Utah and San Antonio before a post-Thanksgiving flight to Philadelphia. Those teams had a cumulative home record of 20-10 through Sunday.

Since the championship years ended, the Bulls have gone 6-52 on this trip, which coincides with the circus moving into the United Center.

That run began with a 37-game circus losing streak, though. Since the skid ended on Nov. 24, 2004, in Utah, the Bulls have gone 6-15 and won at least once on the trip the past four years.

"It's a trip we haven't had a lot of success on in the past. I think this year's a little different," Gordon said. "We've got a new group, new coaching staff. I'm going out there optimistic. Hopefully we can go out there and get something going.

"I'm confident in the way we've played so far, just to start the season off. I'm hoping this kind of carries over into the trip. If can go out there, play with confidence and play hard, maybe we can have success."

Back in the glory years, when the Bulls weren't as worried about going winless on a long road trip, the players saw this as an opportunity to build some team unity away from the distractions of home.

Upon this suggestion, Rose mentioned that he might consider leaving his hotel room under the right circumstances.

"I'll just follow my veterans' lead," he said. "Whatever they're doing, I'm just going to find my way into doing whatever they're doing - if it's positive."

After the Bulls beat Indiana on Saturday to improve to 5-5, Rose already was looking forward to playing his first game at the Staples Center.

He encountered Lakers star Kobe Bryant this summer at the Team USA training camp, but there wasn't a large, celebrity-filled crowd watching back then.

"I can't wait," Rose said. "It's going to be a fun game. They've got good players; they're a great team. (Bryant) is probably the most competitive person I've played against.

"If we give them a challenge, I think it will tell us something about ourselves."

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