There’s no doubt Derrick Rose is having one of his best stretches since knee injuries derailed a brilliant early career.
But Rose’s critics keep questioning his consistency; for every three highlight-reel games, the Bulls point guard always throws in one stinker.
However, a closer look at Rose’s game logs reveals one constant—against the NBA’s top point guards.
So far this season, Rose had matched up twice against Russell Westbook and once each versus Steph Curry, Damian Lillard, Chris Paul and Kyle Lowry.
In those six games, Rose is averaging 21.2. points—almost six more than his season average of 15.4—in 31 minutes of play. Rose’s assists (3.5) drop off a little from his season mark of 4.7 and his rebounds (3.0 to 3.1) are about the same.
By comparison, his counterparts—playing almost seven more minutes per game—have outscored him by a total of three points. Rose’s opponents do have 30 more assists and 20 more rebounds.
Still, a pretty good showing for the former 2010-11 MVP, who by some advanced metrics is ranked the 54th-best point guard in the league.
One more key stat from those six games: Until last night’s 125-94 loss to the Warriors, Rose was undefeated.