THE CHOSEN "1"

"And the other guard at 6'3, from CHHHHHIIICCCCAAAGGGOOOO, number one, Derrick Rose!" Notice something there. Last Friday when I attended the Bulls/ Hawks game at the United Center, I certainly did. Normally when a player is introduced, the PA announcer lets you know where the player attended school. Not Derrick Rose -- He is far too important. Everyone is made clear that Rose was born in Chicago, grew up in Chicago, and one year of college at Memphis withstanding has lived there his entire life. In three short years he has blossomed from the number one overall pick with lots of talent, yet lots to learn, to perhaps the premiere guard in the league. There were two things that really stood out to me about Rose in person. One, was his undying will to attack the basket. He already has a vast array of crossovers and spins to get to the rim for easy points, but in spots where he used to try and make an extra pass he now muscles his way to the free throw line, as well as some spectacular "and 1's." In the most recent edition of 'Chicago' magazine, an interview with Rose suggests that being more physical and getting to the line are clear goals of his this year and it showed. Second, and perhaps more importantly, is the leadership he imposes over his team. Going to the half, the Bulls were down two to a Hawks team that had beat them in a close one in Atlanta just a week prior, and is one of the Eastern Conference teams that could potentially contend for a title. They're offense was decent but their defense was porous, allowing lots of easy points in the paint. Rose answered with this sequence to begin the third quarter: steal and layup, block and breakout layup, steal. Nine minutes in to the third I realized the Bulls had only allowed 5 points. When all was said in done, the Bulls only allowed 26 total second half points in what ended up being an easy Bulls win. So easy in fact, that Brian Scalibrini even found his way into the final minute, and hit the last basket of the game to a defeaning roar. Obviously the Bulls made some adjustments at the half, but even from the upper seating you could see Rose yelling at guys to get back, pushing the tempo on offense, and setting the tone for everyone else. For my money's worth, Derrick Rose is indeed the MVP of the NBA this year, barring some monumental collapse down the stretch. He spent most of the year either without Joakim Noah, or the teams big time off season acquisition Carlos Boozer, or both. Boozer even sat out this particular game, and you start to realize how little star power is actually around Rose. His Bulls are currently in a tie for first place in the East. Where every other contender has two or three super stars, Rose is flying solo. In the years since Jordan left Chicago, it has been a long, tumultuous return to the top. Chicago basketball has once again found its savior, this time a young, hometown hero. Late in the fourth and with the game in hand, Rose crashed the rim and gracefully banked in a shot over his head with a little help from the rim. As he stepped tothe line, "M-V-P" chants rang out through the United Center. The same 'Chicago' article mentioned that Rose always misses when the MVP chants are going, but on this night he made them all. Perhaps because, like the rest of Chicago, he's starting to believe.