Derrick Rose is looking like his old self, according to Russell Westbrook
The Chicago Bulls are one of very few teams that could challenge the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference next season. In order to do that, they will need a healthy Derrick Rose. It sounds like they have one at the moment.
Russell Westbrook has been working out with Rose this offseason, and the Oklahoma City Thunder guard thinks Rose looks like the player he was before he suffered a bunch of significant knee injuries.
Russell Westbrook said Derrick Rose looks like "the old Derrick Rose". Trainer Rob McClanaghan said Rose and RW are "neck and neck again"
— Vincent Goodwill (@vgoodwill) August 11, 2015
Of course, we have heard this many times before. Rose has had some horrible luck on the court. There were stretches last season where you could notice a big difference in his game, but will it last?
Before his first season-ending knee injury, Rose was arguably the best slasher in the game. What he lacked in jump-shooting ability he more than made up for with his ability to get to the basket at will. The knee issues have made that level of play difficult to maintain, and there is always going to be the fear that Rose will go down again.
That said, people almost assume Rose is going to get injured at this point. If he remains healthy and the supposed rift he has had with a teammate doesn’t become an issue, the Bulls will be incredibly dangerous.