Rose might need surgery on ankle
Oft- injured Cavaliers point guard Derrick Rose said he has a bone spur in his left ankle that contributed to his decision to leave the team Nov. 22 and might require surgery.
Rose made his first public comments Friday since ending an almost two- week hiatus, including an acknowledgement that he apologized to his teammates Wednesday.
“I would like to say thanks to the whole franchise — [ general manager] Koby [ Altman], the front office, the players, the coaches, the coaching staff. I’d like to say thank you for allowingmemy privacy to keep my right state of mind and to keep my happiness,” Rose said. “I was just figuring things out. But I’m here for my team. I’m here to win. And that’s one of the reasons why I came back.”
Since being named the league’s MVP in 2011, Rose has played in 237 of 501 possible games, including seven of the Cavs’ first 25 this season.
Rose sidestepped a question about a potential return date: “I’mtaking it one day at a time. That’s the only thing you can do as far as your sanity. You’ll go crazy if you try to overthink it or think you’re going to have a starting day and it’s not there.
“I got to go through rehab with trying to get my ankle right. I got a bone spur that I didn’t tell anybody [ about], but I was just trying to process all that.”
The Cavaliers’ 13- game winning streak came to an end with a 106- 102 loss to the host Pacers, who were led by Victor Oladipo’s 33 points. LeBron James had 29 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Cavs, while Kevin Love added 20 points.