The Derrick Rose Dilemma

Lately there’s been a lot of talk about Derrick Rose and his current injury situation, combined with the Chicago Bulls run through the playoffs this year.  I have the advantage of being able to listen to a lot of sports talk radio – both national and local – while I’m at work, so I’ve heard all the angles from a variety of people.  There are a few key questions that come into play with regards to this topic; First, Does a player owe anything to his organization?  His teammates?  The fans?  Does an organization have the right to force a player to play, and if so, at what point should this happen?  While there are differing opinions on the topic, one thing is for sure – there are two very clear opposing sides to this debate, and there doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of middle ground.  Before I dive into the debate, let me make clear that I have absolutely no bias here.  I have always been a Lakers fan, and since my team finally put an end to their miserable season I have no allegiance to the teams or players still in the playoffs.

Here’s a little background for those of you that have not been monitoring the situation.  During last year’s playoffs against the Philadelphia 76’ers Rose tore the ACL in his left knee.  On May 12 of last year he underwent successful surgery to repair the tear, and the prognosis was an 8-12 month recovery.  For those of you that are mathematically challenged, we are 5 days away from the one year anniversary of the procedure as I am typing this.  In that time the Bulls managed to win 45 games, secure the 5th seed in the playoffs, win the best-of-seven series against the Brooklyn Nets to advance to the semi-finals, and take the first game in the series against the championship-favorite Miami Heat – all without Derrick Rose playing a single minute in the 2012-2013 season.

Here’s where things get a little foggy.  About two months ago the Chicago Bulls announced that Rose had been medically cleared by team doctors to resume full basketball activity.  In other words his knee was 100% healed, and he could resume his normal workload without fear of re-injury.  That was two months ago.  Rose still has not played a single minute.  I’ve heard multiple reports from people that have seen him practice which state he has full movement, and has been practicing to the same level of every other player on the court.  Rose still has not played a single minute.  Derrick stated he would resume playing in games when he was able to dunk off his left foot…this is a feat I personally didn’t see as being necessary, but if that’s the goal he set for himself, so be it.  Recent reports have stated he is now dunking off his left foot in practice.  Rose still has not played a single minute.  Derrick has since stated that the remainder of his recovery must take place between the ears.  He admits his knee is healed, but he is not mentally ready to play in games.

A torn ACL is one of the worst injuries an athlete can endure.  The recovery is long and painful, and many players are never the same once completely healed.  From what I’ve gathered most analysts and retired athletes sympathize with Rose, while most of the criticism for the way he is handling the situation is coming from the fans.  The most common argument I’ve heard in defense of Rose is “nobody knows his body better than him,” and “only Derrick knows when his body is ready.”  His teammate, Joakim Noah, went on a mini-rampage to reporters last night, telling Rose’s critics to “shut up”, because nobody knows what he is feeling.  That would be great, except for the fact that Rose’s body is healthy – Derrick himself has stated that much.  Many of Rose’s critics have pointed to Iman Shumpert returning from the same injury in much shorter time, and Nate Robinson throwing up at courtside in the middle of the game, and wonder why Rose can’t “man up” and play through his injury like those two.  Those arguments simply aren’t fair.  Nobody can tell how an athlete feels, and everybody has a different pain tolerance.

While I don’t think its appropriate to compare injuries among athletes, I do have a problem with Rose essentially blowing off his team due to his weak mental fortitude.  Derrick’s bother, Reggie, is one of the most influential people in his life, and it was reported earlier in the season that he advised Derrick not to rush his recovery, because this year’s Bulls simply weren’t good enough to compete for a championship.  Um, excuse me?  Refer to Paragraph #2 please.  This is an excellent example of athletes taking bad advice from their non-athlete inner-circles (LeBron also learned this the hard way a few years ago).  While it’s not advisable to rush the recovery from any injury, it certainly isn’t advisable to slow your recovery down and write off an entire season.  As we all know, anything can happen in sports over the course of a year – it’s why we love to watch.  To his credit he has not ruled out a return before their season is over, but most people with close knowledge of the team and this situation do not expect him to return before their season concludes.

In 2011 Rose signed a contract extension that pays him around $19 million per year for 5 years.  He made $19 million this year, and didn’t play a single minute.  If he was legitimately injured, I would have absolutely no problem with this.  Injuries happen in all sports, it’s just part of the risk a team assumes when teams and players sign contracts.  When a player is injured he does not owe the team or the fans anything except their best effort to recover and get back out on the court/field.  Rose, however, does not technically have an injury anymore – by his own admission.  He isn’t playing because his head isn’t right.  My guess is he fears re-injuring it, and as such he is compensating and not playing to the level he is perfectly capable of playing right now.  Derrick, get out there and play.  Testing the waters in game situations is the best way to get past the mental block.  Even if he just went out for 5 minutes one night, then 7 minutes the next night, etc. it would be better than not even giving it a shot at all.  Even when he’s 100% confident in practice and starts playing again, it will still be in the back of his mind as soon as the ball is thrown up for tip-off.  The only way to come back is to gradually work back into it.

Having sat out for an entire season, I wouldn’t expect Rose to be nearly as effective as he has been in the past, but a little Derrick Rose is better than no Derrick Rose.  The team gave him almost twenty million dollars this year, he owes it to the team and the fans to at least give it a try since there is nothing medically wrong with him.  I am very interested to see if he returns in the unlikely event the Bulls get past the Heat and advance to the Eastern Conference Finals.  If he slowed his recovery on his brother’s premise that they “aren’t good enough to compete for a championship”, I’m intrigued to see how he handles things when the championship is clearly within reach.  While everyone wants to see him return, I wonder if there would be a faction of people that will look at him as someone that laid back, then changed stride to be part of the glory that comes with being a champion.  Time will tell.