If you watched Chicago torture Atlanta last night, surely you marveled at the ease which Derrick Rose displayed in dismantling the Hawks attempts at defense. Rose finished the night with 30 points and 10 assists while only playing three quarters in the Bulls 114-81 blowout of the Hawks in Atlanta. As a result, the Bulls currently reside one half game above the Celtics for the top seed in the East in spite of playing stretches of the season without their young center Joakim Noah or prized free agent Carlos Boozer.
For argument’s sake, you have your Rose detractors like Skip Bayless who say that two time reigning MVP Lebron James or Finals MVP Kobe Bryant are within reach of Rose. It might make for a debate on First Take, but there’s no argument here.
In one season, Rose has propelled his team to a legitimate finals contender and turned the everlasting Chris Paul versus Deron Williams debate into a second place contest. As evident in his 6 for 8 shooting from behind the arc last night, Rose has improved his shot to where he’s more than willing to take the shot teams were so open to giving him in the past.
Couple his improved shot with his lightning speed and you have the makings of a MVP candidate. If it were up to me I would go ahead and start engraving Rose’s name on the Maurice Podoloff trophy as his ascent to NBA superstardom can’t be denied; at least it shouldn’t be this year.