Derrick Rose didn't make Team USA's final roster for the FIBA World Cup in Spain because the U.S. needs him to beat the likes of New Zealand or Finland in group play. He made it because he'll give Team USA the elite player it needs against the only real threat it'll face.
So maybe we should all take a deep breath and stop fretting over his lingering durability issues.
Sure, it's fair to be concerned when Rose misses a couple of practices to rest his knees, as was reported by Mike Mazzeo and Marc Stein of ESPN.com. And yes, considering Rose's injury history, red flags went up when he followed those off days with a DNP in an exhibition against the Dominican Republic.
The fact that head coach Mike Krzyzewski may split starting point guard duties between Kyrie Irving and Rose doesn't say much for the latter's durability either.
"We'll see as things go on," Krzyzewski said, per Stein. "We might alternate 'em. Both of them are going to play significant minutes."
The FIBA schedule is unforgiving and includes one stretch of five games in six days during pool play. No NBA team (in a non-lockout ...
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Article written by Grant Hughes
Is Derrick Rose Helping or Hurting Team USA During 2014 FIBA World Cup?
August 26th, 2014 by Grant Hughes Leave a reply »
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