Derrick Rose Will Wait Until He is 110%

We all thought Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls was going to make a comeback, but he will not be coming back anytime soon.
This week he mentioned that he "wouldn't mind" missing the rest of the season if his left knee still isn't feeling right.
He told reporters that he wants to come back more than anything, even more than the fans. But he won't return until he is "110 percent." As of right now, he feels like he's only at 80 percent, and that isn't good enough for him to return.
This became a huge topic throughout the NBA All-Star weekend, because LeBron James supports Derrick's decision. James stated, "He shouldn't be rushed back by nobody. Derrick Rose is his own man-this is Derrick Rose's career we're talking about. Nobody else's. Because if Derrick Rose comes back and gets injured again, Derrick Rose is the only person that's got to deal with that. He's an unbelievable talent. He's one of the best players that we've seen in the game and mentally when he's ready, physically he feels like he's ready, then he should make a comeback. Until then, he shouldn't rush it."
Rose maintains he won't play until he's ready and not a second sooner. So Rose and the Bulls are taking their time. For the most part, the Bulls have handled Rose's absence well, despite the fact that, with the exception of Monday's 103-89 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, who were playing without Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker, the Bulls have been good this season.
They are fourth in the Eastern Conference and a half game behind Indiana in the Central Division. D.Rose is playing it smart. He's not just saying all the right things. He's making progress-real progress.
When asked what types of activity he can do now that he couldn't earlier in his rehab, he replied: "Balance. Two months ago, I couldn't balance at all."
Rose's state of mind certainly got a boost when he was granted clearance to begin the early stages of participation in basketball activities, even if he's limited to stationary drills at this point. There is the mental component, too, and Rose is dealing with that. He said he hasn't taken a hit in practice, but isn't concerned.
"That's the way I play," Rose said. However, he added, "It's only me getting over that scared stage and just going out there and playing with that confidence, knowing I've been training six days a week and everything will be all right....It's just that like driving is totally different because the injury happened when I was driving" to the basket in the playoff opener. In the meantime, Rose continues to work and contemplates the kind of player he will be when he returns.
"I know it's going to be something good," Rose said. "With all this hard work I've been putting into my game, I'm doing stuff I never did before. I gained 10, 11 pounds of muscle. I don't know what type of player I'm going to be. I just know that I'm going to be very good."