Derrick Rose’s Return Could Make Bulls Bigger Threat Than Heat in Eastern Conference

It has been nine months since Derrick Rose went down in the playoffs, along with any hopes the Chicago Bulls had of being crowned champions in 2012. Suddenly, their best record in the league didn’t mean anything as their star went down with a torn ACL and the Bulls lost their opening-round series against the Philadelphia 76ers. But that was then. This season the Bulls have learned to play without the MVP and have put together a 30-20 record – good enough to be sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference and in the middle of the playoff hunt, just waiting for the highly anticipated return of Rose. While Rose will likely be back on the court after the All-Star break, it’s been Luol Deng, Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer that have picked up the pieces and led this team in the first half of the season. Without Rose to drive the lane and make the seemingly impossible layup, Deng has led the way averaging 17 points a game with Boozer contributing 15. And without Rose, unlikely heroes l...