Derrick Rose: Will Brother's Legal Woes Be a Distraction as Bulls Battle Heat?

For Derrick Rose the road to the NBA Finals is hard enough without having to deal with distractions off the court.

These days that distraction is Allan Rose, the older brother of the league's newest MVP. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, a judge issued a bench warrant for the arrest of Allan Rose for failure to appear in court on a reckless conduct charge from April 2.

According to the same Sun-Times report, this is not the first time that Allan Rose has been arrested. In 2002 he was charged with manufacturing and delivering cocaine near a park or school. He pleaded guilty and worked off a two-year probation.

The news of his brother's latest legal woes may not be surprising to Derrick, but may be jarring to him going forward. Derrick, the youngest brother by seven years, has had a close bond with his brothers, who recognized his talent at an early age and worked to protect him from the ills and evils of street agents.

While it’s impossible to say that the trouble he is having with his brother won’t affect him, it might be premature to assume it would stall or derail the Bulls' chances against the Heat. While his brother has been a part of his support system, he two older brothers, Reggie and Dwyane, have likely dealt with this in the past and will work to insulate him from such distractions during the highest point in his career thus far.

Still, we have to assume that it’s on his mind. Plenty of times we want to believe that athletes are somehow above and beyond the normal person. That they can take those moments of personal strife and push past them, keeping blinders on for the goal in sight. However, they are human too. They are affected by the things that happen in their life.

Hopefully for Derrick's sake, his brother will work quickly to get his own situation under control. The sooner he can handle his issues and move forward, the quicker Derrick can give full and total attention to the supremely difficult task at hand.

He’ll need every bit of focus and energy to beat the seeming juggernaut that is the Miami Heat. His brother has compromised that focus and energy. Rose will move past, but further issues may not be so easy to overcome.