Derrick Rose: Does He Need to Be More of a Facilitator or Scorer Next Season?

It's official, Derrick Rose is a superstar. How do we know that? Well, its not because of the 25 points per game he averaged this season or the league MVP award. Its because he is now receiving his first steady dose of criticism.

This is what we do in America. We build our heroes up so that when we knock them down later, the collapse is all the more epic. Well, the country and to some degree, his own city hasn't waited that long before commencing with the negatives.

Before the Bulls' playoff failure, Rose could do no wrong. He was just a kid from a tough local neighborhood, blessed with elite athleticism and a great work ethic.

Now, you hear the chirps, "Rose is trying to do too much," "Rose doesn't play defense." Speaking to the former remark that became a frequently heard criticism of Rose, especially in the playoffs.

Is he trying to do too much? Well, the short answer to that question is yes, but there is far more to it than that.

Rose accounted for more of his team's offense last year than any other player in the NBA. He averaged 7.7 assists per contest to go with the 25 points, but still, especially in the postseason, the other Bulls were offensive spectators and not playmakers.

Most of this is not Rose's fault. In most cases, it is caused by the ineptitude of his teammates offensively. The Bulls don't have another player on the roster who can create his own shot.

No other player was able to consistently command a double-team. This was supposed to be Carlos Boozer's role, along with working the pick-and-roll/pop with Rose. Neither materialized consistently, especially not in the postseason.

As valuable as Luol Deng was all season and in the playoffs, when LeBron James was neutralizing Rose, who was guarding Deng? Dwyane Wade was most times.

Now Wade is a good defender, but there is no way in Cleveland he should be able to check Deng. Now do you blame Rose, Tom Thibodeau or Deng in this situation?

Sure, Rose could try to setup Deng to run an isolation working against Wade, but this shouldn't fall on his shoulders alone. Thibs has seen this movie at least eight times this season.

At the end of games, Miami was putting LeBron on Rose to slow him down and it was working. Wouldn't it make sense to run sets that allow for an isolation play for your second-best offensive threat on the floor to take advantage of a mismatch?

Luol is 6'9", Wade is 6'3". Tell me this isn't' a matchup the Bulls should be able to exploit. That said, Luol has to want the ball, if he doesn't, well here we are, right back where we started, Rose trying to do too much.

Does he need to score more? No, but its not really about the numbers. Its about the flow of the game. Some nights 30 points will be in order, other nights 17 or 18 will be what is required.

Does he need to facilitate more? Absolutely, but the organization needs to supply him with teammates who bring more to the table offensively. The coach has to recognize matchups and adjust. His teammates have to step up and make shots and finally Rose must trust them.

I am in no way comparing Rose to Michael Jordan, but I'm old enough to remember when Michael was criticized for not making his teammates better. Believe it or not, critics and media said, "Well, he'll go for 60 points, but the team will still lose."

They were right at that point, but Michael's plight was very similar to Rose. He didn't have a team with a wealth of offensive talent and he didn't trust them. He didn't have a coach that was able to impress upon him the importance of trusting them and he hadn't matured yet.

The maturation will come for Rose. If the teammates come and the head coach develops, the rings will come as well.