Rose Ready to Bloom in The Windy City



The waiting is finally over for Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls faithful.

On Tuesday night, the Bulls opened the 2008 season with a bang defeating the Milwaukee Bucks 108-95. The sellout crowd of 21,762 wasted no time given Chicago native and the #1 overall pick a standing ovation the second he was announced.

Rose would soon return the favor finishing with 11 points, nine assists, four rebounds, three steals, four turnovers, and four crowd-pleasing moves in a little over 32 minutes of action. Starting along side Thabo Sefolosha, the former Memphis star displayed leadership, quickness, and heart.

In one game, his ability to create for himself and his teammates, get to the hole, and run the show demonstrate the type of player Rose will be in the Second City. Sometimes it takes a lot of luck to land a player of his caliber and that is exactly what the Bulls got with their 1.8 percent chance at the top pick in this year's draft. But luck is not an adjective used to describe Mr. Rose.

Wasting no time, Rose turned Milwaukee guard Richard Jefferson around on a fast break less than two minutes into the contest. In the second quarter, Rose picked up a loose ball and tossed a perfect alley-oop to high-flyer Tyrus Thomas. Then in the third, he read the passing lane, darted in front, stole the ball and threw down a thunderous slam dunk. Only a few minutes later, Rose blew past Bucks guard Luke Ridnour like he was stuck in quick sand, got hacked on the arm and completed the three-point play.

He said he graded his performance with a C because of his four turnovers, many would be a little more lenient. Notching a win in his debut along with fellow rookie head coach Vinny Del Negro merits at least a B, especially after last year's debacle.

Last year, the Bulls were predicted by some to compete for the Eastern Conference and even the NBA Championship. Instead, they were extremely disappointing finishing 33-49 and causing Scott Skiles, Jim Boylan, and Ben Wallace to exit stage right.

However, it is a new season and a very different team. Rose leads the starters, while Kirk Hinrich runs the second unit with sharpshooter Ben Gordon. It's been eleven years since Pippen and Jordan led Chicago to their sixth and final championship.

Although, it will be difficult to upend the Boston Celtics, come March and April Chicago will be in full bloom thanks to it's newest superstar, Mr. Rose.