ESPN: Report: Rose named NBA's top rookie
Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose has been named the NBA's Rookie of the Year, the Chicago Tribune reported Wednesday.
The team is holding a news conference at 3 p.m. ET, at which it's expected the point guard officially will receive the award.
Rose averaged 16.8 points per game, second to the Memphis Grizzlies' O.J. Mayo among rookies. Rose led all rookies in assists with 6.3 per game and in minutes played with 37 per game.
Rose joins Michael Jordan and Elton Brand among Bulls named rookie of the year.
Rose had 36 points and 11 assists in his playoff debut, as the Bulls stunned the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference quarterfinal series on Saturday. He followed that up with a 10-point, 7-assist effort in the Bulls' Game 2 loss. Game 3 is Thursday night in Chicago.
HoopsWorld: Rose to Receive Rookie of the Year
It appears as if today the inevitable will become a reality; the Chicago Bulls have scheduled a 2:00 CT press conference to announce "a major NBA award," which could only be the naming of Derrick Rose as the 2008-2009 Rookie of the Year.
As if his 16.8ppg and 6.3apg averages over the course of the regular season weren't enough, his 36-point, 11-assist performance in Game 1 of Chicago's playoff series against the Boston Celtics certainly solidified his role as this year's top rookie. Rose is, in fact, the only top rookie even in the playoffs at this point, something that certainly would have helped sway voters in choosing between him, New Jersey's Brook Lopez, Oklahoma City's Russell Westbrook, and Memphis's O.J. Mayo.
Rose finished the season first among rookies in assists and second among rookies in scoring. Despite the slew of high lottery picks the Bulls have had over the past decade, this is the first Chicago player to win the award since Elton Brand in 2000.
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