When the Bulls lost to the Clippers on December 18, Rose could have tied the game with a free throw. Instead he missed his 29th free throw of the season on his 122nd attempt. He decided to improve it. Since then he's only missed 28 attempts on 238 attempts. One less
ამას მეც დავაკვირდი ისე რომ რაღაც ძაან მაგრა დაიწყო სროლა FTების იმის მერე
მემგონი ცოტა რაღაც პრობლემები აქვს ამ ბიჭს
ლეთს გოუ ბულს ... დღეს ატლანტასთან მოგება ძაან საჭიროა !
I read an article this summer that was recounting how Tom Thibodeau was getting ready to leave work this summer at 11 P.M. when he saw Derrick Rose practicing his threes and then talked to Rose about what his plans for the team were. Immediately three things crossed my mind. First, Thibs really works late, second, Rose works even later, and finally, this team is going to be good.
This year Rose has elevated his 3-point shooting percentage to .347. It's because of the work he put in this summer. Derrick Rose is a player that works on his game. He's also a player that hates to lose. When the Bulls lose, he takes it personally, and literally, gets sick to his stomach. He also uses it for motivation.
When the Bulls lost to the Clippers on December 18, Rose could have tied the game with a free throw. Instead he missed his 29th free throw of the season on his 122nd attempt. He decided to improve it. Since then he's only missed 28 attempts on 238 attempts. One less miss on nearly double the tries.
When the Buls lost to the Knicks on Christmas Day, it was the culmination of a season long frustration with not getting calls when he drove to the lane. While Bulls fans were frustrated with him not getting calls, he didn't blame it on the refs. He took responsibility.
He went to the film. He watched his own games and others who had more success getting to the line. He figured out the reason he wasn't getting enough calls is that he was hitting the lane to quickly. He determined that that if he hesitated as he drove the lane, the could actually get more calls.
On January 1st he broke out his new game. Prior to that point he had been averaging 23.9 points on 20.2 attempts. He was attempting 5.2 free throws per game. Since then he's been averaging 25.8 points on 20.2 attempts and is averaging 7.6 attempts per game. That's nearly a 50 percent increase in getting calls, and almost two more points on the same number of attempts.
Compare this with LeBron James and the Miami Heat's preseason victory party before they ever even had a practice together. The biggest difference between LeBron James and Derrick Rose is that James wants to have won, but Derrick wants to win. In other words, Rose is willing to work for it.
He doesn't just will his team to victory, he works his team to victory. It's the kind of leadership that the the team follows. After the Bulls blew out Philadelphia by 45 points this season, the post game interviews were all players talking about the things they did wrong, and how thy need to get better.
Work ethic is Rose's identity, and it's been imprinted on this team. It's why Carlos Boozer is talking about what the Bulls need to do to win on the road right now if they want to get deep into the playoffs. Un-won rings ahead of the Bulls, and behind the Heat. That's a result of the difference in attitudes between their leaders. It's why Derrick Rose deserves the MVP.
He didn't win it just in the games this season. He won it this summer, when he was practicing his three-point shot at 11 PM. He won it when he determined to improve his free throw shooting and worked on it in the gym. He won it in his living room when he was watching the film to learn how to get even better. That's the attitude that is going to carry the team too the end of the season, and the attitude that will assure the Bulls of the second seed, if not the first.
This post has been edited by Rozer on 3 Mar 2011, 03:35 
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