Derrick Rose not impressed by Indiana Pacers victory celebrations; Determined for payback: NBA News
Indiana Pacers raised a few eyebrows with their impressive win over the Chicago Bulls on January 26, 2012.
The Pacers have been in stunning form this season but a 95-90 win over the Chicago Bulls sent shockwaves through the NBA landscape. What makes it most ignominious for the Bulls is that they were defeated on their home court, undermining their excellent track record.
The Pacers knew what they had achieved on the night. They had broken a painful trend, one which not only saw them lose 4 of the five game in last year’s playoffs, but also the first two games of the best of the four series this time around. So when they celebrated the win, they made sure the Bulls felt their jubilance.
That didn’t please a certain Derrick Rose.
One of the celebrated point guards of the contemporary times and the present MVP, Derrick Rose was baffled by the jubilance displayed by the Pacers at the end of the third game of the series.
Rose said that “I’ll never forget how they celebrated just from winning this game”. He told reports that “I can’t wait to play them again”.
For his everlasting remorse, Rose’s 24 points couldn’t suffice to lead his team towards victory. He had to face certain unexpected defense devised by the Pacers. Given the protracted history of the two rivals and especially the last season’s playoffs defeat, such notion of joy can be regarded as justified at such time of season.
Ronnie Brewer, who replaced Luol Deng and scored 20 points in the game, shared the same sentiments.
"When you're walking off the court, you're in the same corridor," Brewer said on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "And we were walking into our locker room, and you could hear those guys celebrating, cheering, screaming, and that kind of hit home with a lot of guys on our team.”
The Bulls certainly felt the bite after the loss, no doubt, but the fact is that the game against the Bulls was an acid test for the Pacers to concrete their growing reputation of the genuine title contender. Under Frank Vogel and Brian Shaw, this young team has been unstoppable this season and slowly but surely, they have etched their name in the list of Eastern Conference elites.
In the game, the Pacers strategy was all set and directed towards Rose, who succumbed to the pressure and lost the possession of the ball at many critical moments.
It was true that injuries did hamper the Bulls - Rose is struggling with a turf toe and Deng missed the game because of a torn ligament in his left wrist - but the Bulls have been doing well even with the setback and that cannot be an excuse.
Perhaps that is a fact that is hurting Rose and the Bulls and there is no doubt their pride has been dented.
The two titans will face each other on March the 5th now and with Rose seething and the Pacers emerging, the clash is bound to be mouth watering.
What happens on the night is another story.
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