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.

Week 8 Round-up: Fantasy Style

It's coming down to make or break time in your fantasy leagues. Being in four different leagues I find myself at 6-2 (2nd), 5-3 (4th), 3-5 (8th) and 2-6 (8th). The only league I feel I'm done like Matt Millen's football career is the 2-6 league due to drafting Tom Brady in the 1st round and having terrible running backs to protect me, despite drafting Aaron Rodgers.

The other three I find myself alive and well thanks to come clutch performances and crafty managing.

Week 8 Observations:

Running West-brook: Eagles RB Brian Westbrook returned to dominance with a career-high 167 yards, 2 TDs, and 42 yards receiving. When healthy, there is no question he is a top 3 running back, but that's the problem will he stay healthy? Bothered by an ankle injury and fractured ribs already this season, one has to wonder if he'll stay on the field. I'll put my money on another injury and no bye week to help him heal. However, he should put up nice numbers against a poor Seattle squad in week 9.

Who Are These Chefs? I mean Chiefs: Who would of thought Tyler Thigpen from Coastal Carolina could sling the pigskin...well I guess I kinda did or I just knew Brett Farve would throw some picks and give KC a shot. Either way, Thigpen out dueled the legend, finishing 25-36, 280 yards, 2 scores and posting a 110.8 QB rating in the loss. However, don't worry, I didn't start Thigpen, but instead the highly-targeted Dwayne Bowe and all-time great Tony Gonzalez. Bowe finished with a solid 102 yards and Gonzo grabbed 79 yards and a score. 23 points combined from two KC wideouts, I'll take that any day.

Give Me Moore: Another week and another solid performance from ex-Viking and current Steelers RB Mewelde Moore. After posting a ridiculous 120 yards rushing, 14 receiving, and 3 scores in week 7, Moore turned in a very nice performance against a stout run d in the form of the G-men. Moore finished with 84 yards on the ground, 10 through the air and a score. With Willie Parker on and off again with his knee injury, look for Moore to continue to pile up the yardage and scores in Pittsburgh. I have a feeling Parker's knee is worse than believed and could see him being in and out of the line-up here on out. Grab Moore if you can, chances are he is already gone.

Best Connection in Football, Schaub to Johnson?!?: Don't look now, but there may be a new dynamic duo in the NFL. Since Sage Rosenfels went flying, spinning, and crashing to the ground against the Colts, Texans QB Matt Schaub and WR Andre Johnson have come alive. Johnson has averaged right around 148 yards a week his last four while Schaub has thrown for 5 scores in the last two weeks. The poor Vikings secondary is on tap for Week 9, so enjoy the show all you Schaub and Johnson owners.

Put a fork in the Bungals: All you owners with any Cincy players bench them or release them now. Chad Johnson = done. Chris Perry = done. Carson Palmer = done. Cedric Benson = forever done. And even T.J. Housmandzadeh = championship? nope, done. I proclaim this the worse team to have any player on in fantasy football history (Calvin "Megatron" Johnson on Detroit makes the Lions a lot better with Culpepper possibly signing shortly. Hey, he can throw the deep ball. i.e. Culpepper to Moss).

Pick-ups from Week 8: If your looking to turn your season around with most likely five or six weeks left in your regular season...grab one of these late-bloomers.

WR Ted Ginn MIA: This may be a complete fluke, but Ginn is most likely available in almost any league your in after tallying 175 yards this past week against a solid Buffalo Defense. With the wildcat formation in full effect and teams game planning to stop it, look for Ginn to break free in the secondary for a big score next week.

WR Donnie Avery STL: I know some people already pounced on this rookie wideout, but if he's available grab him ASAP. It seems Torry Holt is no longer the big play threat in St. Louie. Avery finished with 163 yards and a score. Steven Jackson should be back against Arizona this upcoming week so look for Avery to hit the long ball again in a possible shootout.

WR Matt Jones JAC: Despite his legal troubles, Jones put up solid numbers last week with 117 yards and a score (while dropping another potential game-winner). At 6-6, may be Jones will finally begin to see his potential as a big play and red-zone threat. The Jaguars travel to the terrible Bungals in week 9 so expect another strong outing from Jones.

RB Kevin Faulk NE: After notching 60 yards rushing, 47 receiving and score against the Rams, Faulk and the Patriots get Indy and their terrible run defense next week. Don't worry about BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Yes, he'll get some touches, but his poor outing and inexperience should get the quicker and more explosive Faulk a shot to shine. Sammy Morris will be out at least another week, possibly two.

WR Kevin Walter HOU: The Texans have won three straight and that's in large part to the stellar play of QB Matt Schaub. With Andre Johnson commanding double-teams, Walter grabbed five for 70 yards and two scores. He has five touchdowns on the year and look for another score this week and some solid yardage as the Texans play the Vikings. The Texans will most likely let Schaub air it out all day.

Check back tomorrow for injury updates and all of my week 9 predictions: studs, duds, and sleepers.