Derrick Rose Now Taking Full Contact During Practice

According to Chicago Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeau, superstar point guard Derrick Rose has progressed to the next crucial step in his long rehab from left ACL surgery. Rose is now taking full contact in team practices, and it’s only a matter of time until he returns to game action (likely next month.) Per ESPN: “Rose’s rehab from his April 28 injury and May 12 surgery has steadily progressed to the point that there are no longer any physical limitations. ‘He’s full-contact, yeah,’ Thibodeau said. The likely date of Rose’s return is after the Feb. 17 All-Star Game. ‘He can do all the cutting, he can do shooting, he can go off the dribble,’ Thibodeau said. ‘So it’s just a matter of him getting acclimated to playing in a game situation. You have to understand that in practice you’re striving to get as close to a game-like intensity as you can, but you also have to understand that you’re not going to be able to get there, so that will be a whole different level. And we have to make sure that he’s ready to handle that intensity.’ Bulls chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and executive vice president John Paxson said recently they’re going to be cautious with the 2010-11 MVP. […] Reinsdorf consistently has maintained Rose won’t play in a game until doctors assure him he’s ready. ‘There’s no date,’ Reinsdorf said during an interview with WGN-TV on Monday. ‘The doctors say that he’s doing everything that he’s supposed to be doing and there’s no specific date. He’s not going to come back until the doctors say unequivocally that he has no greater chance of getting hurt than any other player. If there’s any risk, he’s not coming back.'”