George Hill Disagrees With Derrick Rose Saying Bulls and Pacers Aren’t Rivals


Derrick Rose recently dismissed talk of any sort of rivalry between the Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers (saying only the Miami Heat qualify.) George Hill sees things differently — he says the Pacers and Bulls are on the same level, and ergo, rivals. Per Hoopsworld: “I don’t know how [Rose] can say we’re not rivals yet because we’ve been just as successful as they have been,’ Hill said. ‘But all I know right now is we’re the Central Division champions and for them, they have to come through us to get that. But if that’s what he believes, then that’s what he believes.’ Veteran forward Luis Scola, who joined the Pacers in free agency over the summer, had a different view of Rose’s comments. Scola believes the Pacers should serve notice on the court to erase any doubts on where the unit should be positioned among the league’s elite teams. ‘I don’t see anything negative about it,’ Scola said regarding Rose’s comments. ‘They asked him and he answered. We always demand honest answers from athletes and that was an honest answer. It doesn’t matter. We will try everything in our power to be the team to beat for everybody, but we got to prove that. Indiana was a great team last year and we want to be an even better team this year. It’s okay what [Rose] says. It’s okay what everybody says because we shouldn’t be looking at quotes from other teams.'”