Johnson: Rose Needs To Play Before Playoffs
(WSCR) Derrick Rose's flurry of injuries has been the storyline for the Bulls through this entire season.
All along, it has been said that as long as he is healthy for the playoffs, the Bulls will be all right.
One Bulls expert said that after Rose's 1-for-13 performance from the field in last night's win over the Heat, he'll need to play as much as possible before the playoffs begin.
"You've got his worst game as a pro last night after missing one game with the ankle," K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune told The McNeil and Spiegel Show. "To me, it's really important that Derrick plays, and plays a lot, in these final seven games. He absolutely needs to get his rhythm and timing back before they enter this playoff run."
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The Bulls now own a four-game edge over the Heat in the race for home-court advantage in the East -- something Johnson thinks could be vital for the Bulls.
"(The Heat) are not playing well right now and they're not playing well at a bad time," Johnson said. "Eric Spoelstra keeps talking about this need for a signature road win and they keep failing at it. They're 3-8 in their last 11 road games, and they're losing to teams that they'll likely face in the playoffs. ... Boston and Chicago are on the road. I keep trying to come back to this: What's different about this season as opposed to last season? We all know the Bulls won all three regular season games last season and then lost in the conference finals. The difference, to me, is that Miami is not as good of a road team. I do think home court advantage matters more this year."
