"One thing that troubled James about the Bulls pitch" - LeBron couldn't commit to Chicago because D-Rose never recruited him
The Chicago Bulls were one of the teams hoping to swoop for LeBron James back in the summer of 2010. According to revered NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the Bulls believed they had an impressive presentation to persuade Bron.
While that might be the case, Woj noted that LeBron was still not buying into what the Bulls were presenting because Derrick Rose had shown no interest in teaming up with LBJ.
As per Wojnarowski, the Bulls knew that it would be a big plus if D-Rose would personally recruit James. However, they couldn't resolve the issue, and Derrick never bothered to reach out to LeBron either.
"For everything the Bulls tried to sell – from owner Jerry Reinsdorf to GM Gar Forman to coach Tom Thibodeau – there had been one thing that troubled James about the Bulls pitch: Derrick Rose(notes) never called and tried to recruit him," Wojnarowski revealed.
"Chicago officials never directly requested Rose to reach out with a call, and the young point guard felt James could've always reached out to him had he wanted to discuss the possibility of playing together," he continued. "James needed to be courted, needed to be wooed and apparently it surprised him there was a star who wasn't falling over himself to do that," he added.
D-Rose wants to beat super teams, not join them
In the end, the Bulls failed to make huge progress in courting James. As it turns out, what LeBron reportedly expected at the time was never going to happen.
According to former Bulls forward Taj Gibson, prime Rose was never fond of joining forces with a fellow superstar. Let alone forming powerhouse squads or the so-called "super teams."
Gibson revealed that D-Rose's goal was to beat the best and win the championship, not join the best and win it all.
"'Yo, he's coming through. This guy wants to come. That guy wants to come.' If you know 'Pooh,' like—he don't... he not into all that," Taj once stated.
"You know, he's one of those guys that's really into going against the odds. And that was kind of the makeup of our team. We was on that. That was our whole mentality: We don't rock with nobody that's on that. We want to bring it to them," Gibson continued.
LeBron and Derrick met in the ECF
Eventually, James finally came up with a conclusion, which he later named "The Decision." He opted to take his talents to South Beach and assembled a Big 3 alongside Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
That same season, the Heat and the Bulls led the league. Both squads were favorites to win the title. The Heat were viewed as championship contenders because of their intimidating lineup.
On the other hand, many also believed that D-Rose and the Bulls could finally bring the championship back to Chicago after 13 long years. Inevitably, the Heat and the Bulls faced each other in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Derrick and LeBron understood the magnitude of the series. They knew that playing against each other was the toughest challenge they would encounter that postseason.
James and the Heat prevailed and closed the series in five games. Despite losing, Pooh never considered the "what if" of having King James as a teammate and never asked for someone to join him in Chicago.This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
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