These Bulls Can Contend Without Derrick Rose

Tuesday's latest in the Derrick Rose injury saga hit hard across the NBA, but it shouldn't in Chicago.

Of course it sucks that Rose, the Bulls' hometown hero and franchise player (if by contract alone), might miss the rest of the year after surgery on his knee, and here's hoping he makes a full and speedy recovery.

But for the Bulls and their fans, this isn't the end of the world, or even of the season. This team is still a championship contender.

For those of you keeping score at home, this is the third straight season Rose has sat out several games due to injury. The Bulls front office staff knows this, and they made sure last summer their team would still be competitive if Derrick's balky knees made it a hat trick.

It's turned out better than they could have anticipated.

• The Bulls' foundation is stronger than ever as Jimmy Butler has exploded to All-Star status; Joakim Noah, even in a down year, continues to be a top-five center; and newcomers Pau Gasol, Nikola Mirotic and Aaron Brooks have exceeded expectations. This is without a doubt the most talented Chicago squad outside Rose since the 2011-12 edition that went 50-16.

Another guard can join Jimmy Butler, Mike Dunleavy, Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah in a still-stacked Bulls starting lineup.

• The Eastern Conference is ripe for the picking. Atlanta - who, by the way, is going to fail the "who has the best player in the series" test to almost any other contender - has dominated an extremely weak crop as Toronto, Washington and Cleveland have struggled to get it together. Cleveland might be the biggest threat to the Bulls, but this is the time to strike as the second LeBron era gets rolling.
• Frankly, losing Rose might help the team. Chicago's dirty little secret is Rose hasn't been very good this season - his 16 PER is about league average and only .9 above Brooks - and doesn't seem to be improving as he recuperates. While peak Rose would make the Bulls the favorite, they could be better off trading his terrible 3-point shooting and absolute refusal to drive to the basket and draw fouls - Rose's best skill in 2010-11 - for a little peace of mind this year and improved shooting and confidence when he returns to the court next season.

Chicago's dirty little secret: Derrick Rose hasn't been very good this season and doesn't seem to be improving.

The odds remain squarely against Chicago winning a championship this year - the postseason is always a crapshoot, and the loaded Western Conference means whoever emerges as Eastern Conference champion will have a huge challenge in The Finals - but the Rose-less team's chances aren't much worse than they were with him 24 hours ago. We're still in this thing, Bulls fans.