Derrick Rose Injures Knee In Loss To Portland Trail Blazers

Sad news coming out of Chicago as Derrick Rose left tonight's game with a knee injury. The good news is that it isn't the same knee that kept him out the entire 2012-13 NBA season. Either way, it's news that no one wants to hear. Rose's return hadn't been the fairy-tale that we all hoped for thus far but he had time to set things straight. It'd be a shame if Rose was seriously injured tonight. Rose seemed more comfortable than he has been all year prior to leaving tonight's game late in the third quarter.

At that point he had 20 points, five rebounds and three assists. The Chicago Bulls tried their best without him but eventually lost the game 98-95 to the Portland Trail Blazers. Rose is scheduled to get an MRI tomorrow in Los Angeles. Hopefully the MRI will come back negative, restoring the hope that's currently on temporary hold while we all await further news.

I must say that if it is a serious injury, Rose's career may indeed be in jeopardy. It took him more than a year to not only physically, but also mentally recover from the last devastating injury he suffered in the 2011-12 playoffs. One could only imagine how long it'd take Rose to get back on the floor after another major setback. The question will be if it'll even be worth the trouble of returning to basketball. Even if it is a small injury, there will be concern over Rose's health for the remainder of the year. He was already nursing a hamstring injury suffered just a few weeks ago.

I feel like everyone wants Rose healthy and playing his best basketball. Recent struggles may be a sign that he may need even more time off the court. Returning at half-health in the beginning of the regular season is a gamble within itself. Rose's services will be needed come playoff time, but I don't think he'll make it that far if he continues to play with minor injuries. It's a long season and even the smallest things take a toll over time.

The Bulls have shown that they're good enough to make it into the playoffs with Rose out, but everyone knows that's about as far as they'll get. If it were up to Gregg Popovich, I'm sure he'd be all for resting Rose to preserve his mind and body for the latter part of the season. No matter what happens in this situation, let's just hope that Rose is okay and healthy enough to resume playing soon.