Derrick Rose must get healthy to hold up at deepest position in NBA

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A sore back might keep Derrick Rose from facing off against the Celtics’ Rajon Rondo on Sunday. | Getty Images

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Updated: March 13, 2012 10:37AM

BOSTON — On Sunday, it’s the Boston Celtics and Rajon Rondo. Then the Bulls come home to face the Sacramento Kings and Tyreke Evans. Then it’s the Celtics and Rondo again before the New Jersey Nets and Deron Williams come to town. Later in the month, Brandon Jennings, Chris Paul and Tony Parker visit the United Center.

Sometimes it seems as though Derrick Rose is matched up against an elite point guard in every game he plays.

‘‘In the position I’m in, I have to play that way every night,’’ Rose said when asked if he has added motivation when competing against other top point guards. ‘‘You have people coming after you, but that’s the way I love to play.’’

Rose’s availability for the nationally televised game Sunday against the Celtics is in doubt because of a back injury. He sat out the Bulls’ rout Friday of the Charlotte Bobcats and said Saturday his back was still ‘‘stiff and sore.’’

Rose almost always insists he will play when asked about an injury. He stopped short of that Saturday, casting doubt on his availability.

Rose said he usually knows when he wakes up what kind of shape his back is in, so he won’t know for sure until early Sunday.

‘‘This is the most I’ve ever been injured,’’ Rose said. ‘‘It’s frustrating, knowing I worked so hard. I hate missing games, especially when we’re playing against great teams. I hate missing any game.’’

It’s difficult to be effective at less than 100 percent at the deepest position in the league. Three of the last four No. 1 overall picks in the NBA draft have been point guards, which means Rose might be competing against John Wall and Kyrie Irving for the next decade. Then there are old masters, such as Steve Nash and Jason Kidd.

As though the league wasn’t talented enough at the position, Jeremy Lin has come from nowhere to score 20 or more points in four consecutive games for the New York Knicks, including 38 on Friday against the Los Angeles Lakers.

‘‘There are a lot of great young point guards,’’ Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. ‘‘Even the older guys, you have a whole mix now. You have guys at the end of their careers who are still playing at an extremely high level, the Andre Millers, the [Chauncey] Billupses, the Nashes, those guys. Then you have the guys in the middle, and then you have the young guys coming. There are a lot of great point guards in this league. It’s tough to deal with because of all the pick-and-rolls, the dribble penetrations, the transition. They create easy opportunities for other players.’’

With a lack of dominant centers and rule changes that have opened the floor, building a team around an elite point guard is seen as the best way to build a championship contender.

The Bobcats have the worst
record in the league, and coach Paul Silas said he would draft a point guard No. 1 overall if one were worthy.

‘‘Point guards in this league,
especially now with the rules in place where you can barely touch guys, if you’ve got a guy who is
explosive and can go either way with the ball, that’s almost where you want to start without a dominant center out there,’’ said Cleveland Cavaliers coach Byron Scott, who is attempting to do just that with Irving. ‘‘If you look around the league today and look at the teams that are very good, they are normally headed by great point guards.’’

Rose said the competition is so intense it reminds him of playing as a youngster in Chicago, where there were always players looking to prove they were the best.

‘‘That’s basketball in Chicago,’’ he said. ‘‘We’re battling all the time.’’