Thu Jun 26 19:58:17 2008

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Bulls take Rose with top pick

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New York, NY (Sports Network) - The Chicago Bulls fulfilled Derrick Rose's childhood dream as the point guard became the first pick in the 2008 NBA Draft and will play for his hometown team.

The Chicago native helped lead the Memphis Tigers to the championship game of the 2008 NCAA Tournament during his freshman season, losing to Kansas in overtime, yet Rose was still named to the All-Final Four Team. He led Memphis with his 189 assists and was second on the squad with 14.9 points per game.

The Bulls, who finished 33-49 last season, had the top pick in the draft for the first time since 1999 when they selected Elton Brand.

Rose is just the third guard to be selected No. 1 overall in the last 30 drafts, joining Magic Johnson (1979) and Allen Iverson (1996).

Kansas State forward Michael Beasley was taken by Miami at No. 2. Beasley was a candidate for nearly every national player of the year honor available, becoming a finalist for the Naismith, Oscar Robertson and Wooden Awards before declaring for the draft. He became just the third freshman in NCAA history to lead the nation in rebounding with his 12.4 rpg, broke the NCAA freshman record for double-doubles in a season with 28, logging four in the first half of games as he finished with a scoring average of 26.2 ppg.

The Minnesota Timberwolves selected Southern California shooting guard O.J. Mayo third. The most prized recruit in USC basketball history, Mayo decided to leave school after only one season when he averaged 20.7 points and 4.5 rebounds. He has the ability to play both shooting and point guard positions.

UCLA guard Russell Westbrook was picked fourth overall by the Seattle SuperSonics. He played a large part in pushing the Bruins to the top of the Pac-10 for the third straight year and into the Final Four this past season. He had 12.7 points per game and also topped UCLA in assists, and also played more minutes (1,318) this past season than anyone since the school began tracking such information in 1979.