The Chicago Bulls saw their season end Wednesday night with a 94-91 playoff loss to the Miami Heat, but to their credit they held their own even while being greatly short-handed.

Throughout the series rumors of the return of guard Derrick Rose spread like wild fire, but in the end he made the decision to sit out and wait until next season. Although he received much criticism for his decision, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau remained one of his many supporters of his choice on the team, according to the Chicago Tribune.

"We didn't know and he didn't know," coach Tom Thibodeau said. "He heeded (Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf's) advice from the beginning to not rush it and make sure he's completely comfortable before getting out there. It's too important a decision for him to rush. Until he's completely comfortable, we don't want him out there.

"We knew this was a possibility and that's fine. You deal with it as best you can. We just want him to continue to work like he has been working. We want him completely healthy."

Thibodeau was joined in his support for Rose by some of his teammates as well.

"You definitely, as a player, you want him to come back," Joakim Noah said. "But you understand you have to look at the big picture. I'm really proud of him because he has dealt with it great with all the pressure coming from a lot of people."

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