Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships in the 1990s, but rapper G Herbo recently claimed on the Club Shay Shay podcast that Derrick Rose is bigger in the city than him. Herbo’s comments were brought up on the Road Trippin’ podcast, and former NBA player Kendrick Perkins believes Rose does mean more to Chicago than Jordan.
“I agree with him,” Perkins said. “D-Rose, he is bigger than Michael Jordan when it comes to being in Chicago. People in Chicago from the YN’s, to the old folks, to the people who run the city, that’s their king. D-Rose is their king for not only what he brought to the game of basketball between the lines, but he has done so much in that f***ing community. It’s unreal.
“They f***ing love him,” Perkins continued. “They love him. I’m telling you this. I’ve been in Chicago during that time. It’s D-Rose, D-Rose, D-Rose, D-Rose. He might be the biggest person athlete that’s ever [come from Chicago]… He’s gonna have a statue.”
Rose was born and brought up in Chicago. He shone at Simeon Career Academy and, after a brief pitstop at the University of Memphis, was drafted by the Bulls with the first pick in the 2008 NBA Draft.
Rose, being one of Chicago’s own, was the darling of the city, and he had a fabulous start to life in the NBA with the Bulls. He became the youngest MVP in league history in 2011 and looked destined to lead the team to glory at some point.
Unfortunately, a series of injuries, which included an ACL tear in 2012, meant Rose never quite fulfilled his potential. The Bulls traded him to the New York Knicks in 2016, and he ultimately never came all too close to winning a title in Chicago. Rose still had a big impact on Chicago natives like Herbo, though. Here’s what he had to say on Club Shay Shay.
“Jordan is the biggest of the biggest, I’m not gonna say that,” Herbo said. “But, coming from Chicago, you know he homegrown. We’ve seen it. I used to watch him play when he went to Beasley. I knew who Derrick Rose was from Beasley to Simeon, you feel me? That’s why I felt, it just made it like any kid from Chicago, they dream like you could do it.
“We really watched D-Rose do it and become one of the greatest point guards to ever play in the NBA,” Herbo added. “… He just gave us so much hope in Chicago.”
Herbo also pointed out that he was born in 1995, so he doesn’t have any recollection of the Bulls’ golden era with Jordan. All he has seen are highlights.
You do wonder if Herbo would have had this same opinion if he had witnessed Jordan dominate the NBA with the Bulls in the 1990s. He led the team to three-peats from 1991 to 1993 and then again from 1996 to 1998.
Jordan would end up winning six titles, six Finals MVPs, five MVPs, one DPOY, and 10 scoring titles during his time with the Bulls. He is the best player in franchise history and is widely regarded as the greatest of all time.
Interestingly, Rose has claimed that Jordan wouldn’t be the GOAT if he hadn’t played for the Bulls. Everyone is indeed entitled to their opinion, but this seems like a stretch. Jordan was a force of nature and would have been incredibly successful no matter where he ended up in the NBA.
