Derrick Rose Return: Chicago Bulls Guard To Miss Rest Of Preseason And 2015 Opener?

Derrick Rose still hasn’t recovered from the fractured left orbital bone he suffered on Sept. 29, and it doesn’t look like he’ll be playing basketball anytime soon. According to Bulls’ head coach Fred Hoiberg, his starting point guard is likely out for the remainder of the preseason and perhaps longer.

The Bulls have gone 2-2 in exhibition games, and Rose has watched each one from the bench. Now that he’s probably done for the rest of the preseason, the chance of him missing regular-season games has increased.

"They still want him to be a little bit careful with the swelling and making sure his vision is back to where it's supposed to be, back to where it was before he got hit, before they want him to get anything going on with his blood pressure spiking, is kind of how I understand it," Hoiberg told reporters.

"So he's probably at least a week away from that happening to where he's able to get out and work up a sweat, and then hopefully it's full go from there where we can get him back in some contact drills."

Hoiberg said it hasn’t been determined if Rose will be ready for the season opener. Chicago has four preseason games remaining, and they’ll start the regular season on Oct. 27 against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Veteran combo guard Kirk Hinrich has started in Rose's absence.

If Rose doesn’t come back for the start of the season, the number of games that he misses could pile up quickly. The Bulls start the year with three games in four days, and they won’t have two days off in a row until they are already eight games into the 2015-2016 season.

Rose played in 51 games last season, averaging 17.7 points, 4.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game. It was the most games he’s played in four seasons.

Rose isn’t the only Bull dealing with preseason injuries. Joakim Noah has dealt with a knee injury, and he’s set to play on Wednesday after missing one game. Tony Snell hurt his ankle on Monday, though the injury isn’t considered to be serious.