Rose out vs. Cavs

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CLEVELANDThe first three words out of Bulls head coach Tom Thibodeaus mouth said it all.

Hes out tonight, said the coach. He doesnt feel hes ready to go yet.

Thibodeau, addressing the media prior to the Bulls Friday night tilt against the Cavaliers, was talking about Derrick Rose, of course. The All-Star point guard will miss his third consecutive game with an injured left big toe.

But Thibodeau also shed some light on Roses injury, which has been alternately called a sprained toe and turf toe.

The doctors said its a sprain. Turf toes a pretty wide umbrella. But thats what it is. My understanding is the difference between the sprain and the turf toe is the turf toes underneath the toe. This occurred whenDerrick was face down, when he got hitso it was on the top of the toe, which made it a sprain, he explained. Its day-to-day. And the thing is, no one can say how he feels. Only he can say that. So, each day, hes moving in the right direction and when hes ready to go, hell go.

Like I said before, heres the thing about our team: We have more than enough to win with, so if hes hurt, hes injured, he doesnt play, he continued, fed up with the implied notion that the Bulls would struggle without the leagues reigning MVP. If he can tolerate the pain and he feels good enough, then hell play. Thats the way it is. This is the NBA.

Rose was unavailable for comment before the game.

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