Derrick Rose will miss the rest of the season after undergoing knee surgery, the second time in two years the Chicago Bulls star has seen a season cut short by injury.
Rose had surgery at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago by Dr. Brian Cole, the same surgeon who performed ACL surgery on Rose’s left knee in May 2012.
Rose had torn his ACL when the 2012 playoffs started, and his recovery kept him out of the entire 2012-2013 season. After a long rehab , Derrick Rose was finally ready to return to the court this season, but he made it less than a quarter of the way through before injuring his knee.
Doctors gave Rose two options for repairing the knee. First, he could have his meniscus, or at least a portion of it, removed. That would have allowed him to return to the floor in a few weeks, but could open the door for more injuries. Players who had that procedure, including Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade, have said that procedure can cause more problems in the long run.
The other option was to repair the meniscus, which Rose opted for.
Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said he talked to Derrick Rose about the injury, and sympathized with his star point guard.
“I talked to him at length last night. He’s in good spirits,” he said. “About as well as can be expected under the circumstances. And he’s already thinking about his rehab, and typical Derrick — concerned about his team, his teammates. But that being said, we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. We’re the Chicago Bulls. We have one goal, that’s to win. And I believe we have the personnel in that locker room to get it done.”
Thibodeau said he can’t let the Derrick Rose injury set the team back, however.
“You just take things as they come,” he said. “This is all part of the NBA. Injuries are part of it. That’s why it’s a team. I have a lot of confidence in the guys that are on our bench. They’ve done a good job of preparing themselves. They have to understand what their job is, get in there and get the job done.”
Doctors believe Derrick Rose should be able to make a full recovery from the injury.