Derrick Rose Named NBA's Youngest MVP (BLOG)

Derrick Rose became the N.B.A. ’s youngest most valuable player Tuesday and joined Michael Jordan as the only Bulls to win the award. Th...

Derrick Rose became the N.B.A.’s youngest most valuable player Tuesday and joined Michael Jordan as the only Bulls to win the award.

The news was hardly a surprise. Rose had a spectacular season in leading Chicago to the league’s best record

Rose has a ways to go before he catches Jordan, who won the award five times and led the Bulls six N.B.A. titles, but he is off to a good start. In his third year, Rose led the Bulls to their best season since the championship era.

“I’m not even touching that man right there,” Rose said. “I’m far away from him. If anything, it would be great to be close to him. This is a different team, a different era.”

The 22-year-old Rose received 113 first-place votes from a panel of news media voters. Orlando’s Dwight Howardfinished second, Miami’s LeBron James was third, theLakers’ Kobe Bryant was fourth and Oklahoma City’s Kevin Durant finished fifth.

A product of Chicago’s South Side, Rose established himself as one of the top players in the league after going from rookie of the year to an All-Star in his first two seasons.

He averaged 25 points and 7.7 assists while helping Chicago contend for its first championship since the Jordan-Scottie Pippen era.

Looking for more after consecutive 41-win seasons and first-round playoff exits, the Bulls fired Coach Vinny Del Negro and replaced him with Tom Thibodeau. Then, they landed Carlos Boozer and supporting players like Kyle Korver, giving the Bulls the inside scoring presence they were lacking and one of the deepest rotations.

It added up to a 62-20 record and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs.

Rose ranked seventh in scoring and 10th in assists, making him the only player this season in the top 10 in both categories. The only other Bull to do so was Jordan in 1988-89, when he led the league in scoring (32.5 points) and finished 10th in assists, according to information provided to the team by the Elias Sports Bureau.

Throw in a 4.1 rebounding average, and Rose joins another elite group. He is the seventh player in N.B.A. history to average at least 25 points, 7.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds, along with Jordan, Oscar Robertson, Jerry West, Larry Bird, Wade and James, according to Elias.

In the postseason, he scored 39 and 36 points in the first two games against Indiana. Then he scored 25 points in Game 5 as the Bulls closed out a first-round series with a 116-89 victory.

They stumbled in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against Atlanta, losing, 103-95. Rose scored 24 points. He also limped off the court after twisting his left ankle, but expects to be ready for Game 2 on Wednesday.