Bulls' Derrick Rose Wants Jimmy Butler To Shoot More
By Cody Westerlund--
CHICAGO (CBS) – On a Sunday in which word came that Bulls point guard Derrick Rose's double vision may last until around the start of the new year, he offered a simple plan for how Chicago should best navigate his offensive struggles amid his recovery.
Have wing Jimmy Butler shoot more and take a bigger role on offense.
"Yeah, trying to get him to shoot more, man, especially with what I'm dealing with," Rose said. "Certain games, I'm going to have it. Other games, I'm not. I know it's part of the process."
While he's had his moments and been praised for running the team well, Rose has been inefficient offensively as he deals with continued "blurry" vision following his Sept. 30 surgery to repair a fractured left orbital. Rose is averaging 12.6 points on 37.6 percent shooting, including a 1-of-18 mark from 3-point land. His Player Efficiency Rating of 9.23 is 60th in the NBA among qualifying point guards, per ESPN.com.
Amid this struggle, he maintains he's content with taking a backseat to Butler, who's averaging 14.1 field-goal attempts per game to Rose's 14.2. It was Butler who led the Bulls' charge in a win against the Hornets on Friday night, scoring 20 of his team-high 27 points in the second half and being aggressive in getting to the free-throw line 14 times.
Butler's averaging a team-high 19.4 points after leading the Bulls in scoring in 2014-'15.
"I want him to shoot a consistent amount of shots," Rose said. "He needs to. He shot a lot more threes last game, where all of them were good looks. It's just that he has to be more consistent with (finding) his shots."
On Sunday, it was Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg who tipped off how long Rose may deal with double vision, saying doctors mentioned after the Sept. 30 surgery that the ailment may last up to three months. That timeline would have Rose's vision back to normal in late December or early Janaury.
"It's continuing to improve, and that's obviously a positive," Hoiberg said.
Rose hadn't received word of the timeline, though he's been pleased with his progress.
"You kind of have that hope in your mind that it gets well a lot quicker, but for this to be seven or eight (weeks) out and still the same way, I can't do nothing but live with it," Rose said. "Get the most out of every day, keep putting my deposits in and keep working on my game until my eye gets better. I'm loving the way that I'm working out. I'm loving the way that we're playing. We're winning games, so that's the only thing I'm worried about. Everything else will come."
Rose admitted it's "sometimes" frustrating to deal with the double vision. He hasn't seen defenses play him any differently – "Ever since I've been in the league, it's been like whenever I have the ball, it's like, 'Don't let him get to the rim,'" he said – but there have certainly been stretches in which Rose has made more of a point to dish when he drives the paint because he's not comfortable with his ability to finish.
"It's just moving," Rose said. "The depth perception of the rim, my eyes are thrown off. I'm finding ways around it, but there's no excuses. I'm not going to blame anything on it. I just know it's part of the process and something I have to deal with.
"I'm missing a lot of shots that I normally hit – floaters or layups I normally hit. But everything else will come. I'm getting my legs under me. It's still preseason for me, the eighth game (Bulls have actually played nine). So I'm still warming up."
The Bulls (6-3) host the Pacers (6-4) on Monday night at the United Center. After Joakim Noah grabbed a season-high 18 rebounds Saturday and played inspired basketball Friday, there's been discussion of him moving into the starting lineup in place of Nikola Mirotic.
Hoiberg didn't commit to that yet, though he's still pondering it.
"We're planning right now with starting the same way (with Mirotic)," Hoiberg said. "It could change."
Cody Westerlund is a sports editor for CBSChicago.com and covers the Bulls. Follow him on Twitter @CodyWesterlund.