LeBron James Gives Derrick Rose His Flowers After Bulls Announce Jersey Retirement

LeBron James played against a prime Derrick Rose when he was with the Chicago Bulls in his early years in the NBA.

LeBron James Gives Derrick Rose His Flowers After Bulls Announce Jersey Retirement

LeBron James applauds Bulls decision to retire Derrick Rose's jersey (Image via FirstSportz)

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In the 22 seasons LeBron James has played basketball, he has encountered some extraordinary players. One of them happens to be Derrick Rose, who squared up against the Chosen One on many occasions.

James and his Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers met Rose 3 times out of the 5 times the latter played for the Chicago Bulls in the playoffs. All three times, the Akron native ended up winning the series.

In the 2011 edition, James and his Miami Heat were the favorites to win it all after his blockbuster move in the summer. However, he and his teammates were aware that Derrick Rose was on arguably one of the best MVP runs in league history.

That season, the Chicago native garnered almost as many MVP votes as Dwight Howard and LeBron James received combined in 2nd and 3rd place.

He was, without a doubt, the best player in the league that year, and many felt he would finally help the Bulls win a title after Michael Jordan left them with 6.

In the end, it was not to be as Rose did not have enough to overcome the combined efforts of the Heat’s Big 3. Despite that, the now Los Angeles Lakers superstar knew what Rose had done.

Even though injuries derailed what could have been a legendary career, the Chicago Bulls decided to give their former superstar the ultimate honor by announcing that they would retire his No. 1 jersey.

James decided to lead the applause as he posted roses along with clapping hands emoticons to this news. The 40-year-old understands the Bulls franchise did the right thing for one of their all-time greats.

Derrick Rose gets emotional when Bulls break the news to him

When the Chicago Bulls traded away Derrick Rose to the New York Knicks before the 2016 season, the superstar was shattered. His dream was to play for his hometown team, and he did not envision them letting him go.

The franchise felt they had no other option as his injuries were becoming a roadblock to their goals. Since then, the former point guard has bounced around the league playing on 5 different teams.

Never did he imagine that the Bulls would come back to give him the ultimate honor they could as a franchise. When President and CEO Michael Reinsdorf broke the news to him, the 36-year-old could not hold back his emotions.

He could not believe that the franchise was bestowing him with this honor. Reinsdorf did mention that the only way any player can ask to wear the No. 1 jersey is if the former MVP’s son, Derrick Rose Jr., ever plays for the Chicago Bulls.

LeBron James pushed to sign Derrick Rose

After his trade to the New York Knicks, many felt that Derrick Rose’s best days were behind him. Even though he had played 64+ games in his last season with the Chicago Bulls and his first in the Big Apple, not many were convinced he could sustain that for long.

Derrick Rose joined LeBron James at Cavs
Derrick Rose joined LeBron James at Cavs (Image via Ballislife/X)

That is when LeBron James pushed the Cleveland Cavaliers to sign his former nemesis. The point guard signed a 1-year, $2.1 million contract to join James ahead of the 2017-18 season.

The Cavaliers were looking to reinforce their squad to try to win a title against the dominating Golden State Warriors, and James felt Rose would give them the additional scoring dynamic the team needed.

A few games in, those hopes were dashed when he suffered an ankle injury. He left the team and was rethinking his love for the game after the injuries started to pile up.

After playing just 16 games, the Cavaliers decided to move on and traded him to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Had he sustained another 60+ games like he did the past two seasons, along with his scoring averages, basketball fans would never know if James could have had 5 rings and Rose his first.

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