Derrick Rose: Chicago Bulls Star Has Strong Outing in Return Against Pacers

It had been over 17 months since Derrick Rose had participated in an NBA game, and eyes were on him as he made his return to the court.

Although it was just a preseason game, Bulls fans were anxious to see how the franchise point guard would perform in his first outing since tearing his ACL in April of 2012.

Here is a quick look at how Rose fared in his long-awaited return to the hardwood.

Positives

If you were concerned about whether or not Rose would play with the same level of aggressiveness, you can put that worry to rest.

As the video above illustrates, the Bulls star attacked the rim whenever the opportunity presented itself and did so without any hesitation or fear.

Rose scored 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting to go along with three assists, two steals and two rebounds.

This is an impressive stat line considering the long layoff and the fact that he was limited to just 20 minutes of playing time.

According to Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times, Rose had this to say about his performance:

"

I’m used to playing aggressive and that’s not going to stop me, me getting fouled or getting the and-one. I’m not slowing down, I don’t care who is in the hole or whatever. If they’re going to foul me hard, I’m just going to get up and keep going hard at them. That’s what I’m trying to get used to.

"

Negatives

While Rose did play well for the most part, there were also some aspects I noticed about his game that he will need to work on.

For example, there were instances where he seemed uncertain about what to do with the basketball, which is due to the fact that he has not played with his teammates in quite some time.

As a result, Rose committed four turnovers, but the good news is that his decision-making will improve with each game.

Conclusion

While we should not put much stock into a preseason game, Rose definitely showed glimpses of the player that Bulls fans have watched since he came into the league.

While 13 points won't jump out at anyone, let me throw a couple of interesting statistics at you to put this into perspective. 

Loul Deng connected on just four of 16 shot attempts, and let us not forget that another Bulls star needed 43 minutes to produce 19 points (7-of-28 shooting), six rebounds and six assists when he returned to the court after an 18-month hiatus from basketball.

So while Rose was a little rusty in his return, he played with the aggressive mindset that enabled him to win the MVP award in 2011.

That being said, this outing has put the rest of the league on notice that he is now back.