Bulls at Clippers
A battle between Chris Paul and Derrick Rose would have been must-see-TV. Instead, Rose will be on the sidelines in street clothes nursing another knee injury when the Chicago Bulls visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. Rose, who missed all of the 2012-13 season following surgery on his left knee, left the arena on crutches on Friday after tearing the medial meniscus in his right knee and will undergo surgery.
Rose had an MRI on Saturday to confirm the torn meniscus and is out indefinitely. “It’s sad, knowing how hard he worked to get back,” Paul said after a 103-102 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Saturday afternoon. Los Angeles star Blake Griffin, who had a meniscus repaired over the summer, is proof that the recovery can be done. Griffin posted his seventh straight double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds against the Kings.
TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, CSN Chicago, Prime Ticket (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE BULLS (6-5): Chicago went 45-37 and picked up the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference with Rose on the shelf last season and still has the pieces to put together the suffocating defense that led that charge. Veteran Kirk Hinrich likely steps into the starting point guard spot and Marquis Teague figures to see a minutes increase as the backup. The Bulls dropped the first two on their six-game road trip, squandering a 21-point lead at Portland on Friday night while Rose watched the fourth quarter on the bench.
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (9-5): Paul had a string of 13 straight double-doubles to start the season come to an end with 22 points and nine assists on Saturday but made the go-ahead free throw in the closing seconds to lock up the victory. “To see Chris Paul out there, to see what he does night in and night out with me being his teammate, to me is amazing,” forward Jared Dudley said. Paul went 3-for-4 from beyond the arc in the contest and is hitting 52.6 percent from 3-point range in his last five games.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Clippers took both meetings last season, winning the matchup in Los Angeles 101-80.
2. Los Angeles C DeAndre Jordan has pulled down at least 12 rebounds in each of the last five games.
3. Chicago is also without G Jimmy Butler (toe), who is not expected back before the end of the road trip.