Bulls plan to retire No. 1 jersey next season in honor of Derrick Rose

Just hours before the Bulls were set to receive the Knicks on Saturday night at the United Center, the home organization told their former star that they are planning to retire his No. 1 jersey and add it to there rafters in the 2025-26 campaign. After the game, the former MVP admitted he still felt “in a daze” after hearing the news. 

During the pregame warmups, both teams wore shirts honoring the 36-year-old with the date “1.4.25”, which happened to be all the three numbers he used during his career. The Chicago club unveiled the Derrick Rose Atrium Experience to showcase unique memorabilia from his time as a player.

Even though the Illinois native said he was looking forward for next season’s jersey celebration, he revealed that he wasn’t able to process his emotions during this weekend’s game. “Tonight is not about that,” the athlete said before the game.

OFFICIAL: The Bulls will retire Derrick Rose's number during the 2025-26 NBA season. No other player will ever wear the number 1 for the Chicago Bulls.

Number 1 will always be from Chicago. pic.twitter.com/s7z3J030WA

— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) January 4, 2025

He then added: “It’s about me giving everybody that’s in this room, everybody that was a part of the story, the journey, the good, the bad, the ugly, it’s celebrating everyone.”

During halftime, the Bulls hosted a tribute ceremony for Derrick, which included testimonies from former teammate Koakim Noah, as well as remarks from broadcaster Stacey King and Neil Funk, while the sold-out crowd let out an “M-V-P, M-V-P” chant.

After this, the entire arena witnessed a tribute video with highlight’s of Rose’s career, as well as the debut of a short film called Becoming a Rose. “Thank you Chicago for forcing me to be great,” the honoree said during halftime. “For putting those expectations on me.”

The Chicago team went on to outscore New York by 24 points in the third quarter, after trailing by nine at halftime. At the end of the night, the scoreboard read 139-126 in favor of the home squad, which made Rose’s night even more special.

Derrick played eight campaigns with the Bulls and became the youngest MVP in NBA history. The Knicks coach, who also trained Rose in Chicago, Minnesota and New York, said that it is only a matter of time that he becomes a Hall of Famer. “In looking in the eyes of the opponent, when they had to guard him, you could see the fear and the respect,” he said.