The Chicago Bulls know exactly where their bread is buttered. The reigning MVP Derrick Rose has agreed to a five-year contract extension with the team worth approximately $94 million.
Rose on the extension: “I’ll be able to afford what I want. But not too many things excite me except winning and being around my family.”
The deal was done right before the Bulls completed their two game preseason (both wins) versus the Indiana Pacers.
The extension will start in the 2012-13 season, when Rose is eligible to make about $16 million.
Rose had 12 points and 9 assists in tonight’s preseason game, in which he played all the way till the closing minutes. He had a team high 16 in 29 minutes in the preseason game this past Friday.
The Bulls won a league high 62 games last season, before losing 4-1 to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals.
“The reason why we lost last year, I put it all on me,” Rose said.
“Me not making the right decisions at certain times, not knowing the clock at certain times, turnovers, all that stuff really got to me and it hurt the team. When I looked at film, there were a lot of plays where I could have made the extra pass, and my basketball IQ got higher,” he continued.
In other words, he’s not resting on his laurels.
Last year at media day it was big news (for some weird reason) when Rose asked rhetorically “why can’t I be MVP?” The oft replayed quote proved to be fortuitous.
Actually, I do know why this not exciting quote was national news- not many players/coaches say much during this preseason sessions, so anything colorful usually gets turned into more than it is.
At the time, I thought “why is that news, he’s a #1 overall pick, a franchise cornerstone, he should compete for MVP awards and expect to win them.
“If anything, (the MVP) made me work harder. I want to be better as a player. I really worked my tail off this summer,” Rose said at this year’s media day.
The Bulls went as far as they did pretty much because of him; and Thibs’ coaching. You cannot say enough about how deserving Rose and Thibodeau were in receiving the MVP and Coach of the Year awards.
“The team is good. I wouldn’t trade my teammates for anything in the world,” Rose later added.
Rose on Thibs:
“He’s a tough coach, every practice is going to be tough…As a player it’s going to happen throughout your whole basketball career, you’re going to have a coach who’s always yelling and talking to you. But it’s not to be an a-hole (and he said a-hole, not a**hole), it’s to push you as a player and help the team, help your teammates.”
Both player and coach share that desire to put their craft/vocation first and foremost in their lives. Probably second and third too.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site that generates millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker, and Fox Sports
A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio shows all across the world. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too.