Derrick Rose had 18 points, five assists and three rebounds in 25 minutes in the Chicago Bulls' 97-95 win at the Utah Jazz.
Tom Thibodeau was asked after the game if Rose looked fatigued in the second half.
"Oh I don't know. Jesus. He's got to get out there and play," Thibodeau said. "I thought he did a lot of good things. You could see he's not real comfortable with the ball yet, but that will come. When Derrick strings some games together, he's going to take off. He's got to go. That's the bottom line. He's got to go."
Rose has tried to be cautious about his future and has missed eight games overall after missing four earlier in the season because of sprained ankles.
"It's been time," Rose said. "To me, it's been time. Every injury is a setback a little bit, but as far as emotions and everything, how hard I worked, it's been consistent with how I'm feeling, being positive. And it's been a minute since I've played. This is the first one and now it's behind me and now we're on to Denver."