Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler Are Right Pairing at Right Time for Chicago Bulls

With all the buzz about which team has the best backcourt, the Chicago Bulls have thrown their hat in the ring with Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler.

Butler is now in his fourth year as a pro, but the 2014-15 campaign marks the first year he and Rose have been able to play a decent amount of games together and develop a real chemistry. Rose’s meniscus tear last season limited them to just 198 total minutes.

The Bulls went through Keith Bogans and Rip Hamilton trying to find the right backcourt partner for Rose, but little did they know they'd drafted him in 2011. Butler was expected to make "the leap" last season, but injuries slowed him down. The development and work he put into the offseason is crystal clear now, though.

Rose and Butler are meshing very well. Their styles are a little different, but as both players continue to improve as shooters, the better the pairing will fare. Butler gets to the line eight times per game, while Rose is doing most of his damage from the mid-range.

Let's detail each player's progress this season and look at how far the Bulls can go with this pairing.

Derrick Rose's Return

Rose has improved quite a bit over the last two weeks, but he still has his fair share of offensive struggles. Teams are starting to go under screens every single time during pick-and-roll sets, and Rose's inability to knock down long jump shots has hurt his effectiveness.

Luckily for Rose, Chicago spent the summer building a robust roster. More importantly, Butler has made an unexpected leap—and a quite large one at that—taking an immense amount of pressure off Rose to do everything. It's something the 26-year-old point guard is extremely grateful for, per ESPN Chicago's Nick Friedell:

"

It's a good feeling. First time I've ever had that while I've been in the league. It takes a lot of pressure off everyone, where someone can easily go off for 15 or 20 points within a couple of quarters and put the [opposing] team away pretty quick. It's fun. We don't take it for granted, and we just know that we could always improve every day.

"

Chicago has had to heavily rely on Rose in the past, especially during the playoffs, where he led the league in usage rate the year he won MVP.

That has changed now. With Butler, Pau Gasol and a deep bench, Rose no longer has to be the No. 1 option on a nightly basis, something Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times has likened to San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker:

It's not a bad option considering Rose is coming off two very serious knee injuries. As he continues to try and regain something close to his old form, maybe the former MVP is better off riding in the passenger's seat as he takes turns with others manning the wheel.

Butler surely makes this easier, as his burst onto the scene is perhaps the league's biggest surprise.

Jimmy Butler's Emergence

No one expected this sort of an improvement from Butler, but the four-year swingman has become a legitimate option for the Bulls offense.

Primarily it has been Butler’s post game that has shined this year. Chicago now looks for Butler and running a lot of its offense through him as well. His usage rate this year has shot up to 22 percent, a six-point increase.

This has also led to a considerably large uptick in points, as he's averaging close to 22 points per game, compared to just 13 last season. His play this year has led to a lot of praise around the league, including Chicago's star, Rose, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times:

"

It's for real. I think he's a star now. A lot of people can say what they want to say, but he's got the right attitude for it coming in. He was always different; he was always Jimmy. We're loving it right now because he's just making the game easy for everyone else.

"

Butler is doing much more than scoring, though. He's a jack of all trades; his rebounding numbers are very impressive, averaging six rebounds per game, two on the offensive glass. He leads all shooting guards in offensive rebounding per contest and is inside the top 40 across the entire league.

His assists numbers are up too, an area Tom Thibodeau is very pleased with:

"

Thibs on Butler's offensive efficiency: "He’s very unselfish. That part is being overlooked. He’s a playmaker. He makes great decisions."

— K.C. Johnson (@KCJHoop) December 29, 2014"

What's even more impressive is that his defense hasn't faltered too much. Opposing players are being more efficient this season against Butler than last year (47 percent to 41 in 2013-14), but he's averaging more blocks per game and consistently hounds opponents.

Butler is rising through the ranks as one of the league's best shooting guards and could very well be the best two-way player in the league. He's the favorite for the league's Most Improved Player award and is a strong candidate for an All-Star bid if the coaches vote him in.

It may not even be too far-fetched if he starts getting a bit of MVP buzz, although winning the award is highly unlikely.

So what does this mean for the Bulls?

Bulls Reaping the Benefits

What this duo gives the Chicago Bulls is immeasurable. With Butler’s sudden emergence as an offensive threat, the Bulls now have three go-to guys late in games along with Rose and Gasol.

Chicago's best two-man lineup is its backcourt, with an offensive rating of 108.2 and a 51.2 effective field-goal percentage. They also have the best pace at 97.5 possessions per 48 minutes, as they’re able to push to the ball with frequency and both can finish very well around the rim.

The duo also makes up the fourth-best defensive pairing in terms of opponent field-goal percentage (43.1). It couldn't have come at a better time as the Bulls have the most championship-ready team in the Rose-Thibodeau era.

Chicago’s star point guard certainly shares those sentiments, per Friedell: "I don't want to jinx ourselves, but I think we can really make a run for this [championship] this year. But it just takes focus, discipline, and we got to sacrifice a little bit." 

And the sacrifices have been made.

The fourth quarter is usually Rose's time to shine, but he's had to defer to Butler given his improved offense. It's paid off for the Bulls as both players rank in the top 20 in terms of fourth-quarter scoring among players who have played in at least 15 final periods.

Rose and Butler have helped lift Chicago to a top-10 offense and cap off one of the best starting five groups in the league. With a bench that allows them to go 10 deep, the Bulls are ready to take the Eastern Conference crown and hope that a Larry O'Brien trophy will soon follow.

Note: Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com and accurate as of Dec. 31.