Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose is set to go into surgery Friday morning to repair a medial meniscus tear in his right knee, the team announced Thursday.
The procedure will be performed by the Bull’s team physician Dr. Brian Cole. Organization officials were upbeat the injury won't prevent the star point guard from suiting up again this season.
"Yeah, the hope is that he will," executive vice president of basketball operations John Paxson said Thursday at a team charity event when asked if he expects Rose to play this season. "We've still got over two months in the regular season. We're all hoping that (happens)."
The team announced Tuesday night that Rose was feeling pain in his knee, and an exam and MRI confirmed a medial meniscus tear.
A six-week recovery would put Rose back on the court around the start of the playoffs, at a time when the intensity ratchets up another notch or two. That wouldn't be easy for a player who's been shaking off the rust after sitting out most of the previous two seasons because of injuries. Even so, getting him back would be a big boost for a team looking to challenge for the Eastern Conference championship.
The timeline for the 2011 MVP's return will be determined after the operation, but the Bulls clearly are hoping recovery won't take as long as his 2011 injury.
"I don't want to speculate until he goes in, but we're certainly hopeful," general manager Gar Forman said.
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President and chief operating officer Michael Reinsdorf added: "We feel for Derrick. He's put so much effort into his various comebacks. We're hoping this is just a minor setback."
Still stung by the news, the Bulls lost to Charlotte on Wednesday after winning six of seven. That left them tied for the Central division lead with Cleveland, which played Golden State on Thursday.
"He's gone through a lot as a young player," Paxson said. "I had three knee surgeries. They were at the end of my career. To have them early in your career, especially given the athlete that he is, it's hard. We all feel bad. Honestly, we're in this with him."
The 2011 NBA MVP played in only 10 games last season before he had surgery for the same injury in November 2013, shelving him for the year.
It's unclear when Rose re-injured the knee. He appeared to be rounding into form last month, averaging 22.6 points over his final 14 games before the All-Star break, but he had struggled since returning to the court after the time off.
Rose became the latest NBA star to be sidelined for a significant period within the past few days.
The Associated Press' Andrew Seligman contributed to this report.
