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Imrem: Watching Rose, Kane evolve once was fun

How ironic that Bulls star Derrick Rose and Blackhawks star Patrick Kane live in the same Chicago high-rise.

They're living similar circumstances, too.

"I haven't seen him or his mom," Rose said Monday afternoon at Bulls media day in the Advocate Center.

The question to Rose was whether he had talked to Kane since each was accused of sexual assault this summer.

The situations don't have much in common except for the allegations of violence against women.

Authorities investigated Kane after a woman accused him of sexual assault in his home outside of Buffalo, New York.

An ex-girlfriend of Rose filed a lawsuit against him and two of his friends alleging sexual assault at her home in Los Angeles.

"You have to be very careful," Rose said, referring to whom an athlete associates with. "I think my case scared everybody in the league. Everybody in the league should learn from my mistake."

Rose's case isn't resolved. Nor is Kane's. Stay tuned.

Usually it's neat to watch an athlete begin his professional career in Chicago and follow his evolution as a person as well as a player.

Some get married and start families. Some dabble in what will be their next careers. What most never do is find themselves accused of sexual assault.

Rose and Kane were fun as they navigated from teenage rookies to mid-20s veterans.

Kane went from a youngster who could grow only peach fuzz instead of a full playoff beard to now having actual facial hair.

Rose went from a soft-spoken youngster you had to lean in to hear to a businessman who spoke loudly and clearly Monday about his eagerness to negotiate his next lucrative contract in two years.

The fun stopped when the allegations exploded during the past couple of months.

The alleged Kane incident occurred this summer; the alleged Rose incident in 2013 … East Coast for Kane; West Coast for Rose … criminal case in which Kane hasn't been charged; lawsuit in which Rose was named …

Obviously the cases can't be lumped together, but it's hard not to lump the two athletes together.

Each was peppered with questions about his legal predicament when he reported for training camp this month. Both professed innocence of any wrongdoing and expressed confidence that would be proven.

All these developments are such a long way from when Kane first joined the Hawks and Rose first joined the Bulls.

So is Patrick Kane's $84 million contract and Rose's hundreds of millions of dollars from salary and endorsements.

No, these aren't kids anymore. They are battle-scarred from their experiences in sports and especially life now.

Kane and Rose have owned a big chunk of this town in which athletes are huge celebrities.

Gone from Chicago are Oprah and Siskel and Ebert and MJ, so the Kanes and Roses and emerging Cubs players and future Bears have an opportunity to fill the void.

But here Rose and Kane are, embroiled in serious legal matters that supersede sports.

"There's a process Derrick has to go through," Bulls general manager Gar Forman said Monday.

Management and teammates support Derrick Rose and Patrick Kane and treat them like family members going through troubled times.

Regardless, both the Bulls and Hawks will remain in awkward positions until the cases are resolved.

Whenever and however they're resolved.

mimrem@dailyherald.com

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