Bulls superstar point guard Derrick Rose is out indefinitely because of a torn ligament in his right knee that will require surgery.
The Bulls announced Saturday the former MVP has a medial meniscus tear. The timetable for his return was not immediately clear.
“Subsequent examinations and an MRI confirmed a medial meniscus tear to his right knee, which will require surgery,” the Bulls said in a statement on their official Twitter feed.
“Rose is out indefinitely, and will not accompany the team on the rest of its current road trip.”
Though the injury isn’t as serious as a torn ACL, losing Rose for any chunk of time is obviously a huge blow for a team expecting to challenge LeBron James and the Heat for supremacy in the Eastern Conference with its franchise player back.
Rose had the MRI exam in Los Angeles on Saturday after he was injured the previous night in Chicago’s 98-95 loss at Portland.
The three-time All-Star sat out last season recovering from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee suffered in a playoff game on April 28, 2012. He didn’t play again until opening night of this season.
Rose was on crutches in the training room but was not made available to the media after the Bulls squandered a 21-point lead in their second consecutive loss.
“He was in pain and felt like he couldn’t push off his right knee,” Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau said Friday night.
“It’s sad, knowing how hard he worked to get back,” said All-Star guard Chris Paul of the Clippers, who will host the Bulls on Sunday.
Rose’s injury occurred in the third quarter against the Trail Blazers.
He lost his footing while trying to change direction to get back on defense when Nicolas Batum stole a pass from Joakim Noah and started the other way. Rose limped across the court and couldn’t put any weight on his knee. After the Blazers scored, he came out of the game during a timeout. It didn’t appear there was any contact on the play.