Karma

Ex-Bulls’ guard Derrick Rose has taken a leave of absence from his latest team, the Cavaliers.  Rose did the same thing last season with the Knicks, but this time he bothered to get permission first.

The 29-year old Rose is said to be frustrated by all his injuries; on top of the four knee surgeries, he’s now dealing with a badly sprained ankle.  But, other than his immediate family and hangers-on, does anyone really care if he retires, as is rumored?

Rose has always put himself first, except maybe for that time someone else took his SAT test; that transgression led to the school records for his one year at Memphis getting wiped out by the NCAA.  As for his time with the Bulls, Rose never reminded anyone of Michael Jordan or any other Chicago great athlete who played with pain.  Every rehab was a study in deliberation, if not equivocation.  And let’s not forget all his talk about having to do what was right for his family come free agency.  Derrick Rose couldn’t be expected to give Chicago a hometown discount, no sir.

Life is hardly ever fair, though it has seen fit to allow Rose to earn over $117 million in salary alone.  Ernest Hemingway wrote about heroes who demonstrated grace in the face of adversity; I saw it all the time in high school and college sports.  Here’s a chance for Derrick Rose, finally, to do the same.