Rose goes retro in Chicago Bulls' victory
It was quite a night for nostalgia at the United Center.
The Bulls celebrated 1970s Night with a Village People concert at halftime, but Derrick Rose treated it more like 2011 Night.
In a flashback to his MVP season, Rose started fast, turned on the jets a few times and piled up 19 points Wednesday as the Chicago Bulls rolled past the Memphis Grizzlies 98-85.
Coach Fred Hoiberg wasn't even here during the 2010-11 season, when Rose won MVP, but he enjoyed the retro performance.
"It's a great confidence builder for Derrick to go out and play like he did tonight and hopefully he's off and running now," Hoiberg said. "It was fun. It was great to see Derrick get in there with that explosiveness tonight."
Rose got off to his best start of the season, hitting 5 of 7 shots for 10 points in the first quarter, while the opposing point guard, Mike Conley, had no points and no assists.
In the third quarter, Rose had a couple of old-time, one-man fastbreaks, jumping in front of Conley once to pick off a pass and finish an easy layup.
"We made an emphasis that we had to get out and run, because they don't like to run," Rose said. "They like to slow things down and grind it out."
When he wasn't on the court in the second half, Rose rode a stationary bike in the tunnel. He took a long rest before checking in at the 4:59 mark of the fourth quarter. After stepping off the exercise bike, he did some stretches with a leg band on the sideline, then walked behind the bench and stretched some more.
"Just trying to stay loose," Rose said. "When I usually come into games, I'll be so stiff that it doesn't feel right. Riding the bike gets my legs a little bit loose, gets the sweat a little bit. I think tonight it helped."
Rose and Jimmy Butler still were fighting off sickness Wednesday but managed to combine for 43 points. Hoiberg said before the game Rose was in much better shape than Monday, when he scored 6 points on 2-of-3 shooting against Philadelphia.
"That's what kids do. Yes, they get you sick," Rose said, referring to his 3-year-old son P.J. "I'm still getting over it a little bit. Still got a couple more days to recover."
Hoiberg also suggested before the game Rose is starting to get over his problems with blurry vision. Rose hasn't been able to see well out of his left eye since suffering a broken orbital bone on the first day of training camp.
"I think the only time he has just a little bit of issues is when he looks down, but everything else is fine," Hoiberg said.
After getting off to a good start, the Bulls (15-8) fell behind 53-50 at halftime. They opened the third quarter with a 13-3 run and never again trailed.
While Rose and Butler set the tone, Doug McDermott played well in a supporting role. The second-year forward scored 17 points and hit 4 of 8 shots from 3-point range. When his shot is falling, he clearly belongs on the court in important moments.
"Whenever I see him, I make sure I'm driving on his side because his man is not going to help," Rose said. "Every open shot he takes, we think it's going down. With a shooter like that, it makes the floor bigger because they have to hug him."
The Grizzlies (14-13) didn't help themselves, going 16-for-28 at the foul line. Shooting guard Courtney Lee led Memphis with 18 points.
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