CHICAGO _ The Bulls' future finally formed on the court, a full 18 months after the franchise-changing trade of Jimmy Butler.
But it was the Bulls' past that stole the show Wednesday night as Derrick Rose dominated early and often, setting the tone for the Timberwolves' 119-94 victory.
Rose finished with 24 points and eight assists in 38 minutes, even drawing "MVP! MVP!" chants from the United Center faithful in the fourth quarter. Several fans were decked out in Rose jerseys, including one from his Simeon High days.
Zach LaVine returned after missing five games with a sprained left ankle, scoring 28 points in 26 minutes off the bench. Bulls coach Jim Boylen said it's his policy to return injured players initially in a reserve role.
Thanks to early-season injuries to Lauri Markkanen and Kris Dunn, the trio _ all acquired in the Butler trade _ had played just 11 minutes together this season and 255 last season as LaVine worked his way back from ACL rehab.
Playing LaVine in a reserve role limited their shared court time again. And what transpired looked largely disjointed.
On the other hand, Rose, who knows a little something about ACL rehab, looked smooth. He toyed with every defender thrown at him, most consistently Kris Dunn, and shot 11 for 19 in his extremely efficient 38 minutes.
Did Rose even break a sweat? He certainly broke a smile.
Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau rarely smiles during games. But he could've, seeing as he's now 5-1 against his former employer.
Karl-Anthony Towns added 20 points and 20 rebounds for the Timberwolves.
LaVine returned earlier than expected, after he suffered the injury against the Magic in Mexico City. LaVine had hinted at his return on Sunday in Cleveland, citing the chance to face his former team.
"It's just fun playing against them," LaVine said on Wednesday. "You get up for certain games more than others. In the NBA, that's how you're able to go through a whole season. I love those dudes over there. But obviously I want to compete against them."
Plus, LaVine knows as well as anyone how little he, Markkanen and Dunn have played together.
"The better players on the court, you're a better team. We want to play together. Circumstances have been weird with us," he said. "I had the ACL where I missed an extended period of time. Then Kris got hurt. Then Lauri got hurt. Then right when everybody comes back, I rolled my ankle a little bit. Your teammates, you practice with them and bond with them. So we want to play and haven't got the full package yet."
As is their typical sideline demeanor, Thibodeau and Boylen spent most of the game standing and prowling the sidelines, screaming. Given that Thibodeau's demanding, hard-charging ways were cited as part of the reason for his Bulls' dismissal, is Boylen concerned he's following suit?
"I don't. I know that if I'm not me, it's not going to be very good," he said. "I had an AD tell me one time, 'Nobody does you better than you. So be you.' I'm trying to do that with what I think this team needs and that fits my personality _ direct, honest, about the team.
"(Thibodeau's) a competitive guy who cares about his guys. I'm that way too. I think we're both trying to get our players to honor the essence of the team."
The Bulls' modest two-game win streak is history. Rose rekindled plenty of memories of his historic run to the youngest MVP award in league history while creating new ones for his hometown crowd to savor.
