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It was a year ago, on April 28, 2012, when Derrick Rose suffered a knee injury that is still being felt by the organization, its fan base and the entire NBA.

There was 1:19 remaining in the fourth quarter of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals when Rose drove into the lane and jump-stopped. The grimace on his face was immediate as he tried to jump for a shot before crashing to the court holding his left knee.

The United Center fell silent as the worse was expected and later verified. Rose tore his ACL and would undergo surgery on May 12. The Bulls won Game 1 but would go on to lose to the eighth-seeded Philadelphia 76ers in six games.

The prognosis was for Rose to take 8-12 months to rehabilitate and the process seemed to be going according to plan as periodic reports reflected steady progress. From doing basketball drills to practicing to taking full contact to scrimmaging five-on-five starting on Feb.18, Rose appeared poised to return after the All-Star break.

But suddenly the possibility that he wouldn't return this season started to surface in stories and interviews, and now it appears almost certain he won't be back at all this season.

ESPNChicago.com's Nick Friedell talked to many of those who were present at the time of the injury, and here are their stories:

Joakim Noah

"I just remember being up like 20 points and thinking we were going to win the championship. Even when he went down, it was weird but in my mind I was like, 'He could be out for a couple weeks and we'll be alright. We'll be ready for him to come back.'

"I even remember after the game I went to the Berto Center to go get some ice and get some treatment, I never do that, I was just so into it and then when I heard the news ... it was just hard. You know how hard we work every day, so to see him go down like that was tough. Not just for us as players but for the whole city."

“

It was a dark day. It was a dark day for us. We won that playoff game but Derrick getting hurt -- I'll probably remember that day for the rest of my life.

” -- Joakim Noah

When you first saw him on the ground what were you thinking?

"I just wanted to be there. Any time one of my teammates goes down I just try to be there for them. I didn't know how bad it was going to be. My mindset was more on just finishing the game and seeing him after."

How did you find out?

"My uncle called me. I can't believe I remember all this."

What was it like when you saw him the next day?

"It was hard, man. It was hard. I don't even like talking about it to be honest with you.

"It was a dark day. It was a dark day for us. We won that playoff game but Derrick getting hurt -- I'll probably remember that day for the rest of my life."

Carlos Boozer

(Long pause) "Truthfully, it was just sad, man. I couldn't really believe it. I was hoping it wasn't that serious but it was. Seeing him cry in the locker room, that was tough because he knew what happened already. It was tough, man. It's tough to talk about."

Did you know when he went down?

"No, I didn't know. I was just hoping it wasn't that bad. Honestly, I thought it was his ankle or something and then I realized he said it was his knee, so I was just hoping it wasn't that bad to be honest."

What was that locker room like?

"It was depressing, man. It was one of the saddest locker rooms -- we just won the game -- and it was one of the saddest locker rooms I might have ever been in."

What was the next day like for you?

"Tough, man. We really just met for a couple minutes, walked through a couple things and got out of there because everybody was down still. It was kind of like a ... it was just depressing, man."

Doug Collins:

"I was right in front of our bench and I saw him come down awkwardly and I just knew what he did -- I saw the way his leg buckled -- because I had that injury. And so I knew immediately.

"... I knew he hurt his knee and I was very sad. Obviously, it changed the playoff picture in our favor. They also lost Noah in Game 3, but Derrick Rose is a shining star and a bright light in the NBA and we miss him. He plays the game the way you're supposed to play it every night. He plays to win. He's a hometown kid who loves being in Chicago and representing his city. He's got a great family. And I'm one of these guys, I want to see the best players on the floor and so I hope he's going to be healthy soon and get back out there. Will that affect us? Yeah. But that kid needs to be out there playing basketball. He's special."

Taj Gibson:

"I remember it like it was yesterday. He was in the game, we talked about the game scheme, drew up a play for him to break down the defense and probably get a running hook, running floater -- he went down the lane, got a running floater, and just came down wrong. I was hoping it wasn't even his knee. I thought it was his ankle. He always had bad ankle problems, but he hurt his knee. We got a great win but the look on everybody's face wasn't even happy about the win. We were more like hoping that he's OK. You never want to see a teammate go out like that. But just the reaction when we got the news ... most of the guys just ran in the training room and we went into the training room and you didn't see him but we saw him come out with that disappointment look on his face it was surreal and we knew that it was something serious. That's what I remember the most."

"I just remember his face when he came out of the X-ray room and everybody was just shaking their head. It was like one of those scenes -- you're there but you don't know what's going on, but you know something was bad happening. It was one of those reactions, the whole locker room was just quiet, we heard people moving around but you hardly heard people say anything. That was crazy."

What was it like the next day?

"The next day was mellow. It was like you come in, it was quiet, real mellow and quiet. The only thing you mostly heard was the basketball. Guys just came in there and we got the news about how he was and it was cool because guys understood what they had to do but at the same time we really didn't understand like, 'What's the gameplan now?' How we got to adjust, we got to draw up different plays, we got to do different things like that. But guys were still like, 'Damn.' At the same time they were like, 'What could we have done differently? Maybe the second unit could have played a little harder, we wouldn't have had to worry about putting him back in the game.'"

"It was just a lot of stuff going on but then he was like, 'You got to man up. You got to get ready for the next game.' Things like this happen every day. But it was just tough because you go through a whole year of ups and downs, ups and downs, ups and downs, and get another blow like that to your teammate, you're like, 'Wow,' that was crazy. "


Sixers guard -- and Chicago native -- Evan Turner

"I think as big an icon as D-Rose has been to basketball and in the NBA and in Chicago, you're talking about a kid that's always been admired ... I root for every Chicago kid because you're putting on for the city and you inspire the younger kids coming up, (the injury) is traumatizing to a community. Chicago is on his back so you see him go down definitely is horrible because he's a pro's pro. You like watching him, you like seeing what he does, performing, so that was hard to watch, too."

What do you remember from that moment?

"I just thought he pulled a muscle because he didn't really react. I hear when people tear an ACL they start screaming and stuff. He didn't react or anything so I said he probably just caught a cramp because he's been playing off and on and that was it. I just figured nothing bad had happened, he never really got hurt before and then when it came out he tore his ACL, I was shocked because he didn't have any reaction."

John Paxson

"What I remember was there was excitement about the playoffs starting and us feeling that we had put ourselves in a position to make a run. And then we're sitting there just a short time away from winning Game 1 and knowing that every playoff game, that's the most important game you play, so we were going to have a 1-0 advantage.

"And then watching Derrick go down -- from that moment on I was just kind of numb -- because you knew it was bad when you saw him on the floor. And then the rest of the day was going to the hospital, staying with him and around him, and understanding that it was bad. And it was hard not to think about what that meant for our basketball team, but numb's the word to describe how I felt that day."

Gar Forman

"I remember when he first went down, because he had had several injuries during the year I thought ... I didn't have a good angle so I initially thought he had landed on someone's foot or sprained an ankle, I couldn't see that there was no one around. But then when I saw it on the TV, because we have a TV where we sit, then it was scary seeing him go down with nobody around. And then I just remember leaving the hospital and driving home and it just felt numb. That was about it."

A Chicago-area sports psychologist, psychiatrist and hypnotist experienced in treating elite athletes are largely in agreement about the curious case of Derrick Rose, but their methods for helping the Bulls guard, if they were to work with him, are as fascinating as they are diverse.

For all of them, it begins with acknowledging fear as possibly a major component in Rose continuing to hold himself out a year after reconstructive knee surgery. Rose has maintained that while the knee feels strong, it's his confidence in testing the knee that remains an obstacle.

Vincent Chung, a hypnotist who has worked with professional athletes from Chicago teams as well as Olympic athletes, said the key for any athlete in that position is to get rid of "paralyzing fear."

"There are several factors when dealing with injuries and one is the fear of being re-injured," Chung said. "Fear is actually a useful emotion. It teaches people to be careful. You don't want to be fearless because then you are going to do things that are unsafe. But paralyzing fear also doesn't protect us, it actually makes it more dangerous so when Derrick is doing the acrobatic moves he does, he's in more danger of getting hurt."

To eliminate that, Chung, who received his MBA from the University of Chicago but said he became interested in hypnosis to help fellow Wall Street traders balance fear and greed, might ask Rose to associate a color with different emotions, then change the color and thus the emotion.

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DEERFIELD, Ill. -- Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose was officially ruled out of Game 3 of their playoff series against the Brooklyn Nets on Thursday, but coach Tom Thibodeau still refuses to shut the door on a possible return this season.

"We've said this all along," Thibodeau said. "If he's ready to come back, he's coming back. And that's no matter when it is. So if it's a week from now, great. If it's not, then that's fine too. We just got to keep moving forward."

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CHICAGO -- As Joakim Noah clomped victoriously up and down the court on his busted wheel Monday night, gritting his teeth through 25 inspired minutes of bad playoff basketball, the NBA nation turned its critical eyes to Derrick Rose sitting on the bench, resplendent in his suit, watching the game unfold around him.

Two players connected by friendship and uniform and right now, symbols of different athlete archetypes, The Selfless and The Selfish. Forget the truth, print the legend.

Once the patron saint for doing things the right way, St. Derrick of Englewood is now being flogged by fans and reporters inflamed by impatience and distrust.

Read the entire story.

CHICAGO -- It might have been a lost season on the court for Derrick Rose, but because of insurance, the Chicago Bulls are covered.

Under NBA rules, every team has to pay for insurance for their top five-paid players, if offered by the league insurance policy issuer, MetLife.

According to the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the insurance policy kicks in after a 41-game deductible. When that is reached, the team gets back 80 percent of the remaining base salary. Since Rose missed the entire season after May 12 ACL surgery, the Bulls will get $6.561 million back from Rose's $16,402,500 salary. An insurance industry expert confirmed if Rose were to miss all of next season, the team would get back 80 percent of his total salary.

MetLife offers insurance to teams on an annual basis, but the insurance company can put exclusions on certain players or even body parts. If that happens, the team can opt out of the plan and try to find another insurance plan. As Larry Coon's salary cap website, cbafaq.com, notes, Luol Deng was excluded in 2008-09 because of a history of back injuries.

That's also what happened when the New York Knicks signed Amar'e Stoudemire to a $100 million deal in 2010. His well-documented knee problems, which included micro-fracture surgery, were deemed uninsurable.

But despite a widespread belief that Stoudemire's troublesome knees and eyes aren't insured, an insurance industry source confirmed the Knicks were able to find supplemental insurance for those body parts. He would have to miss 41 consecutive games for the Knicks to recoup any salary.

Given his age and lack of injury history before last season, Rose was easily approved by the league plan, giving the Bulls, a first-time payer of the luxury tax, a slight financial relief.

NEW YORK -- Derrick Rose's conversations on the sideline Monday night may give the Chicago Bulls hope that he may be considering a return during the playoffs.

Rose, who sat on the end of the bench for just the third time this season during Game 2 of the Bulls' first-round playoff series against the Brooklyn Nets, acknowledged to teammates just how much he misses being out on the floor.

"Me and him were chatting it up the whole time at the end of the bench," forward Taj Gibson said after the Bulls' 90-82 victory. "He was just eager. He was just saying like, he can't wait to get back, he can't wait to play. And just critiquing the game, talking about what we needed to do, what kind of plays. He knew a lot of the sets coming out so he would just scream out plays. He was just hyped talking about good stuff."

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Chicago Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau continues to leave the door open to the possibility of Derrick Rose returning during the playoffs, and while few expect that to happen, Thibodeau said it wouldn't be a problem for the Bulls to establish a rhythm with their point guard.

Rose underwent ACL surgery on May 12.

"The thing is he hasn't played all season," Thibodeau said on SportsCenter. "So he's doing well overall, he's not quite ready. But there's always a possibility.

"He's focused on his rehab and the guys that we do have available have to focus in on our opponent and being ready to play."

The Bulls open the playoffs at the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.

""We knew this would be extended with Derrick from the summer," Thibodeau said. "And you don't replace a guy like Derrick individually, we understood that we would have to do it collectively. And that's the way we have approached it.

"He's been practicing with us for a good part of the season, so I don't think it would be a big adjustment at all (if he came back). Whatever he could bring would be a huge asset for our team."

CHICAGO -- Carmelo Anthony on Thursday implored the media and fans to have patience with Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose in his return from knee surgery and the New York Knicks forward believes Rose should sit out the rest of the season.

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Derrick Rose hasn't played a minute of game action this season, but his jersey remains one of the NBA's top sellers.

The Chicago Bulls star, who is still recovering from knee surgery in May 2012, had the fifth-best selling jersey at NBAStore.com and the NBA Store in New York from April 2012 to Nov. 26, the league announced on Tuesday. Rose trailed top seller Carmelo Anthony of the New York Knicks, LeBron James of the Miami Heat, Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder and Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Coming off an MVP season in 2010-11, Rose had the league's top-selling jersey last year and was second behind Bryant in international jersey sales for the 2011-12 season.

The Bulls also ranked fifth in team merchandise sales this season.

Derrick Rose isn't ready to give up on the idea of playing this season just yet.

Rose left open the possibility that he would return when asked if he wouldn't play this season.

"Oh no," Rose said Sunday before the Chicago Bulls' shootaround. "I'm keeping it open."

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NEW YORK -- With just eight regular-season games remaining after Thursday, Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose is running out of time to make his return this season. That fact hasn't stopped Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau from maintaining optimism that Rose still may play this season.

"He's close," Thibodeau said before Thursday night's game against the Brooklyn Nets. "But he's not going to come back until he's ready. He feels a lot better but he's still not there. You guys have seen him play; his skill set is power, speed, stop, go, change of direction. So he has to make sure he's completely comfortable with that. He's close but he's not quite there yet."

Thibodeau was asked how he would define "close" considering he's been around Rose for the last three years.

"To have the ability to do it every day," he said. "Like right now, we're not doing a lot of scrimmaging because of where we are (in the schedule) so it's hard to gauge. But when we did scrimmage, I thought he looked very good. But the most important thing is him being comfortable, so we got to let him work through it."

The veteran coach can tell that Rose is still making progress and is not thinking as much about his injured left knee as before.

"I think it's instinctive," Thibodeau said. "Part of that, though, is just going to come when you get out in a game. He's gotten more comfortable, he's moving along, he just has to keep doing the things that he's doing."

How will Rose find out what he needs to know unless he starts playing in games, though? Thibodeau knows that ultimately Rose has to make the decision on his status.

"It's on him and only he knows," Thibodeau said. "So we have to trust him. And as I've said many times, I trust him implicitly. He'll know when he's ready, and when he is, he'll go."

Thibodeau said that he and Rose continue to speak all the time about how the former MVP is feeling.

"We talk every day," Thibodeau said. "We'll know when he's ready and he'll communicate that. He's very strong-willed. He's not going to be swayed by anybody. He'll know when he's ready."

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Philadelphia 76ers coach Doug Collins said the Chicago Bulls and Derrick Rose have made the right decision by being patient with the star guard's return from knee surgery.

Collins witnessed Rose tear an ACL in his left knee against the 76ers in Game 1 of the opening round of the playoffs on April 28, 2012. He said Tuesday he wasn't surprised Rose hadn't played in a game since.

"No, I never put a time timetable on a player," Collins said. "I had that knee injury. You look at the young kid (Marlon Brown) from Georgia. He's in the NFL combine and all. Everybody rehabs a little different.

"The one thing you have to do is when you come off a serious knee injury, the physical aspect is just one side of it. The other huge side of it is the mental aspect of it. Do you trust yourself playing in a crowd exploding off that leg? Derrick Rose plays in a crowd. He's in the crowd. He's falling. He's coming down on one leg and stuff. He has to be incredibly mentally ready to say, 'I'm ready to do those things again.' "

Rose, who has been cleared medically to play for a while but is working to regain his confidence in his left leg, is considered day to day by the Bulls. He has been traveling with the team since January and went through a shootaround Tuesday, but coach Tom Thibodeau said Rose's status has not changed.

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Chicago Bulls general manager Gar Forman said Wednesday that Derrick Rose has not had a setback in his rehab from ACL surgery and maintained Rose will return when he is ready to play.

"We said (after his May 12 surgery) that it was going to be an 8-12 month window for him to get back to 100 percent," Forman said on Comcast SportsNet Chicago. "We're right within that window now. He's doing fine. There has never been any type of setback. He continues to make progress which is very encouraging.

"Everything has been really positive. I know the fans have been real anxious, but from our standpoint and mostly from Derrick's standpoint, we want to make sure that he's 100 percent ready when he hits that floor."

Rose told reporters Wednesday morning that he would not make his season debut against the Miami Heat and said he still doesn't know when he will return with 13 games left in the regular season.

Rose has been medically cleared to play, a source told ESPNChicago.com on March 7, but he still wasn't confident dunking off his left leg.

Forman said the plan remains the same for Rose.

"Now we're at a period where it's day to day, week to week. ... we communicate all the time," Forman said. "I don't want to speculate looking ahead three to four weeks. When Derrick is ready to play, Derrick will play. That's been from the get-go what our stance has been."

MINNEAPOLIS -- With just 14 games left in the regular season, it's looking less likely that Derrick Rose will return this season.

The Chicago Bulls superstar did what he has done for the past two months Sunday night, going through a pregame workout which includes jump shots and cardio work, but he did not play in the game. On the other side of the floor, Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio, a man who also tore his ACL last season, was busy playing in his 43rd game of the year.

As has been the case since Rose went down, many fans looked to Rubio for guidance in how a point guard handles rehab and when a return to the court should be reasonably expected. Once Rubio came back on Dec. 15, roughly 10 months after surgery, many fans expected Rose to follow the same path. Obviously, the players are different, but Rose's continued absence since he was medically cleared to play again weeks ago has left some fans in Chicago questioning his mental toughness for the first time in his career.

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Parting shot: Israel Gutierrez discusses Derrick Rose's long-delayed return to the Bulls.