Rose has brought it to every country in the world championship games. He is making his shots and is getting others open for them to add their own points. Kevin Durant, who is the dominant scorer for the USA team, would not get any open looks if it wasn’t for Rose and his drive and dish mind set. The point guard is making defenses think he is going straight to the hoop, then gets frustrated when he dumps it off to an open cutter.

This is something Rondo can do, but Rose just does it better. Rose has better court vision. Rose has a better jump shot. Rose plays better defense. I’ve been saying it for a year, Rose is better than Rondo.

This is the official stamp of my statement. Obviously Coach K thinks Rose is his guy to start the USA team. He wasn’t even playing the Boston guard in exhibition games causing Rondo to drop from the team because he wasn’t going to play. After Kevin Durant, Rose is the best player on this team. He is by far the best point guard, besting Chauncey Billups and Russell Westbrook.If Rondo would have stayed on the team and made the final cut, Rose would continue to outplay him as well.

With this said, the Bulls should move up to the third best team in the eastern conference on every ones list. Some have Boston better than Chicago, moving them to fourth, no way. The Bulls have a better point guard, Rose over Rondo.  Also, a more productive power forward in Carlos Boozer over Kevin Garnett and a healthy athletic center in Joakim Noah compared to Kendrick Perkins or the extinct Shaquille O’Neal and Jermaine O’Neal.

Plus, the Bulls have one of the top five three point shooters in the NBA, Kyle Korver, to match up with Ray Allen and Ronnie Brewer is going to be a handful for Paul Pierce.

This is only the match up with the Boston Celtics, not the rest of the league.  There is no doubt in my mind the Bulls are in the top three eastern conference teams, Rose outplaying Rondo is a big reason why.

With 16.5 seconds left in the game, Rose hit two free throws to put USA ahead and eventually win the game. On an interview on ESPN, Rose spoke of his go ahead free throws.

“I thought, ‘I’ve got to hit them,’” Rose said. “Over here, people are going to remember me for this.”

The reason I viewed this game was to see the point guard match up. Rose did get the start, so, we were able to see Rubio and Rose go at it more than I initially thought.

Rose took it to Rubio at all times. Rubio seemed glued to the floor at times as Rose drove right around him to get to the basket or dish it to Lamar Odom or Durant around the basket. Rose scored only 13 points, but led the team with his determination on the court.

Durant is a beast and one of the best scorers in the world, not just the NBA. He showed his superior skills against Spain. He also showed his defensive skills as he blocked three point shot attempts from Rubio and Rudy Fernandez at the end of the game.

Team USA only has more exhibition game before the World Championship games begin Aug. 27.

This game against Spain was by far the hardest test during the practice games since they’re the defend champions. Both teams came to win and showed an elite level of basketball. USA coaches Mike Krzyzewski and Jim Boeheim also displayed they will switch up defensive strategies or the lineup if they need to in order to win games.

There should be plenty of excitement around World Championship basketball with the young stars of the NBA playing at such a high level in the international circuit.

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Today at 3 p.m. central, they see if they can match up with the reigning World Champions, Spain.

This game will showcase one of the most intriguing match ups in international play, Spain’s Ricky Rubio VS Derrick Rose.

Rose is already one of the top NBA point guards in only two years of play. Rubio is a celebrated player in Spain who was drafted last year to the Minnesota Timberwolves but hasn’t made the trip to the states.

Both have great court vision and incredible speed. They also have the same problems, need a better jump shot.

Rubio will more than likely play most of the game while Rose will come off the bench and share minutes with Russel Westbrook, Chauncey Billups and Rajon Rondo. Still, this is the best match up in the game.

Where? At Derrick Rose’s house.

Rose is a well known candy addict who has been awarded a Skittles vending machine with his name on it. According to ESPN, Skittles has been sending Rose mass amounts of Skittles since they learned of his sweet tooth, so why not give him his own machine.

Honestly, I’m jealous. The only candy I eat is the colorful S at the end of the rainbow. How do I get one? Never mind, I don’t need one.

The bigger question is, if every athlete said they liked something, do they get it? I’ll ask Reggie Bush.

The Chicago Bulls are one of these teams. They raided the Utah Jazz when Carlos Boozer and Kyle Korver made Chicago their new home.

Okay, if you read bullshome.com, we know this stuff. Lets get to the point. All of the rebuilt teams are being questioned for their free agency pickups. Hoopsworld.com thinks the Bulls are the only team to have these pre-season questions as the site shares  their doubt in Chicago’s quest for elite status in the eastern conference. .

Hoops World arguments why the Bulls are being hyped up and will not be a top three team in the east.

• The team doesn’t know each other well
• Rookie Coach
• Celtics, Hawks, Bucks
• Why should we expect them to be a top three team in one year of team development?
• Too many ifs

Time for Bulls Home to tell you why we should expect the Bulls to be a top three team behind the Miami Heat and the Orlando Magic.

First, are we forgetting about professionalism? NBA players are paid millions of dollars to play basketball. In their salary, isn’t a small portion added to compensate with change. Boozer is a veteran who obviously wanted the challenge of helping the Bulls become a premier team because he chose to sign.

He was a free agent, he didn’t come to Chicago in a trade. I think this is a general human philosophy, when you know the challenges ahead of you before you start the next task, your prepared for everything including taking the time to make the team gel.

As professionals, these guys should be able to play together. It isn’t like Korver, Keith Bogans, C.J. Watson, Ronnie Brewer and Boozer are baseball players, they’re basketball players who have played with many many different teammates in their careers from high school to college to multiple NBA teams.

Second, does the name Phil Jackson ring a bell. If I remember right, the man with the most NBA championships as a head coach, started his career as an assistant coach.

Tom Thibodeau is a defensive guru. As an NBA assistant coach, 11 of his teams in the past 19 years have been in the top ten in defense. He has endless basketball knowledge and is working with a team full of guys who are willing to do what will help them win.

I’m not calling Thibodeau the next Jackson, but it isn’t fair to say he won’t make a difference. Many current head coaches of winning franchises were assistant coaches before they were the head honcho.

Third, the other competition in the eastern conference looks the same as the Bulls do on paper. This means, the questions Hoops World are asking about the Bulls can be asked about the Hawks, Celtics and Bucks.

The Bucks have just as many new pieces as the Bulls: Jon Brockman, Keyon Dooling, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Drew Gooden, Corey Maggette and Larry Sanders. So, if the Bucks have all these new players, who are not as talented as the Bulls pickups, how are the Bucks any more cohesive?

The Hawks are the same team as last year. They re-signed Joe Johnson for an undeserving contract and didn’t add any new pieces around last years playoff duds. Plus, they have a new coach who is heading a roster of unmotivated players.

The nursing home, I mean the Boston Celtics, have more ifs than all of the other teams, mainly injuries. One injury to Paul Pierce, Ray Allen or  Kevin Garnett and their season is over. They have backbone and are arguably the toughest team in the NBA, but basketball favors youth over age.

Kendrick Perkins is already out until Feb. and his replacements, Shaquille and Jermaine O’Neal, are not going to be able to keep up with the Celtics who love to run. Jermaine is simply hanging on for hopes of a championship while Shaq can only beat up his body so much before he needs to take two or three weeks off, not once or twice, but multiple times during the season.

Fourth, they are expected to be a top three team because they have the talent to do so. Rose is a top five, probably top three by end of this season, point guard in the league. Boozer and Joakim Noah are now one of the best low post duos in the league.  Mentioned before, these are professional players who have been playing basketball for many many years who should be able to play with anybody.

Finally, it is the post season, every team has ifs. Will Steve Blake and Matt Barnes make a difference in Laker land? Will Blake Griffin be the player he has been hyped up to be? Will John Wall automatically make the Washington Wizards a playoff team? We could do this for each team in the NBA.

The difference between the Bulls from some of these other teams is, they have a strong young nucleus who wanted players who wanted to win to come to Chicago. Boozer is a winner while the role players are willing to do what they have to if it means victory. The ifs surrounding the Bulls are not, injuries or cohesiveness.

The only what if in Chicago should be, what if they beat the Miami Heat.

Rose won the skills event last year during his rookie year and expected to defend his crown.  Taking his name out of the skills challenge shouldn’t really bother anyone.  As a Bull’s fan, of course you want to see your team’s players in these special activities but it would be better to see him healthy next week helping Chicago get and stay above .500.

Although, Rose stated he will not be in the skills competition, he will play in his first All Star game Sunday.  This is a good move.  Sure, he could get injured in both events but he doesn’t have to involve himself 100% in the big game.  He can chill at the perimeter and dish out alleyoops to the multiple leapers on the Eastern Conference squad.

The skills challenge means he has to sprint and use all his leg muscles at full strength to try to beat his opponents.  All Star game play,  skills challenge sit out; GREAT IDEA.

The injury kept him out of the rest of the game.   Rose has been excited for his first All Star game.  Not only is he scheduled to play in the big game on Sunday but he is also supposed to defend his skills competition title from last year.

X-rays came back negative for any serious damage.  The decision will probably come down to the team doctor and Rose himself.

It would be awesome for all Bulls fans to see him participate.  Plus,  who wants to give up a challenge champion title without even defending the honor.  Rose is a tough guy.  The injury came up negative so I don’t think there would be any reason for him not to play.  I’ll call it,  he will be in the game.

In his 2nd year in the NBA, Rose is the first Chicago Bull to be named to the team since Michael Jordan in 1998.  In case you can not do math,  it has been 12 YEARS.

Rose came into the league last year as the number one draft pick and showed he was worth it.  At the end of the year, he won the Rookie of the Year award.  He also helped his team push the Boston Celtics to a tough competitive 7 game series in the playoffs.

This year, Rose picked up from exactly where he left off.  Contributing 20 points a game, Rose is a scoring point guard but is contributes to the team in every aspect of the game.  He plays defense and averages 6 assists a game.  His jump shot is developing and it seems his court vision is hitting x-ray level.

http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2010/01/derrick-roses-all-star-highlights.html

Having Rose named to the All Star team should be exhilarating for all Bulls fans.  This means the team is getting recognized.  Also,  the selection means the Bulls have a key piece to building a champion.

Boston’s Rajon Rondo, Atlanta Hawk’s Al Horford and the Charlotte Bobcat’s Gerald Wallace join Rose as first year selections to the East All Star team.  Atlanta’s Joe Johnson, Boston’s Paul Pierce and Toronto Raptor Chris Bosh complete the Eastern Conference’s roster.

Dallas Maverick’s Dirk Nowitzki will be the hometown hero of the game since it is in Dallas.  Oklahoma City Thunder’s Kevin Durant, Memphis Grizzlies Zach Randolph and Utah Jazz’s point guard Deron Williams are the first year participants for the Western Conference.  Los Angeles Laker Pau Gasol, New Orleans Hornet Chris Paul and Portland Trailblazer Brandon Roy were selected as well.

During the regular season Derrick Rose averaged 16.8 points and 6.3 assists per game.

Other notable rookie of the year nominations included: Michael Beasley and O.J. Mayo.

Check out our shop section for Derrick Rose merchandise.

During the interview Derrick Rose talked about the toughness of camp, his first game thoughts, his new diet, and about being back at the United Center.

Derrick Rose on MouthPieceSports.com

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