Derrick Rose Injury & Return Date Update: Rose Now Able to Cut on Injured Knee; Will He Return Stronger Than Ever?

#The Return-it's Adidas slogan for the countdown to the inevitable return of the Chicago Bulls's most important, most explosive and most lethal offensive player, Derrick Rose.

And it's been the one thing on the minds of Chicago hoops fans everywhere when it comes to the Bulls, who are sporting a solid, but not dominating, 5-3 record eight games into their 72-game NBA season.

Rose averages a career 21.0 points and 6.8 assists, and racked up 21.8 points per game and 7.9 assists last season.

So far, the 2010-11 NBA MVP has been on a steady pace towards full recovery from his devastating ACL tear he sustained in the first game of the NBA Playoffs in May. He reached another milestone in his recovery, Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said earlier this week, with Rose now being able to make "cuts" on his knee, a maneuver necessity for NBA point guards to be able to master.

"It's the next step for him. Everything is going according to plan; he's not ahead of schedule, he's not behind schedule, he's exactly where he should be," Thibodeau told Rant Sports.com. "He's doing great. You have to be patient with it. He's been very diligent, he's in everyday. He's moving along He started cutting, he's been shooting for a while now, he feels pretty good so we just have to be patient."

The Bulls head coach has expressed confidence that Rose will return this season, although there has been speculation that the Bulls superstar may not return until next season. The time frame for an ACL recovery is eight to 12 months, with some players never being able to return to the form they had pre-injury.

Still, Rose has a number of backers and believers who see him returning to the same form that made Chicago into serious NBA title contenders last season.

NFL star Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings--who recovered from an ACL injury of his own last season to lead the NFL in rushing yards--told ESPN that he had faith that Rose, who he met on the set of a video game commercial prior to the Bulls star's injury, would return to his dominating form.

"I remember seeing [Rose's injury] and man, you don't want your fellow athlete going through something like that, but it's motivating, too, to think about him now," he said. "He's a good person, very respectful, and just knowing his spirit and his work ethic, I know he's going to come back better than before."