"He's an All-Star in the making," Karl said before Sunday's game. "Superstar, I'm not going to go that far. But I'd bet on him being pretty special. Twenty years old, does things now so easily with very little knowledge of the game, very little instinctive development. He's already pretty good.

"It's the combination of the size and power. Jason Kidd, Deron Williams, that's the mode I see. Initially in college, I thought more Jason Kidd. But watching him in Golden State, I'm thinking more Deron Williams."

But not even Rose could save the Bulls from a 13-0 Nuggets fourth-quarter run to take control in a 114-101 loss on Sunday night at the Pepsi Center, dropping them to 1-3 on this trip, which continues Monday night in Utah.

As he maintained throughout after bruising his right hip late in Friday's victory at Golden State, Rose started and showed no effects from the injury.

The Bulls played without Luol Deng, who sat with a sore left hamstring for the third straight game. Deng keeps expressing optimism he'll play -- now pointing to Monday's game -- but then sits.

"You bring him back too early, and all of a sudden he tweaks it a little more and he's out another week or two," coach Vinny Del Negro said. "So let's be a little cautious. It's difficult for him. It's difficult for the team. But sometimes you can't control those things."

Del Negro started Larry Hughes again for Deng and returned Joakim Noah to the lineup but substituted freely, especially early, in a nod to this city's altitude.

"I played here for a lot of years," Del Negro said. "Believe me, it affects you. It burns you pretty good. So you have to get a good warm-up. You've got to blow it out early in the first few minutes, take a minute or two break and then get back out there. Once you get your second wind, you're usually fine."

The Bulls picked up where they left off offensively in Golden State, shooting 50 percent to trail 58-54 at halftime. Ben Gordon scored 15 points and Drew Gooden added 14 by the break, while Rose had nine points and four assists.

Facing a more physical team up front, though, the Bulls continued to struggle defensively. They allowed Denver to shoot 61 percent, with Nene and Kenyon Martin scoring 23 of the Nuggets' 30 first-half points in the paint.

But the Bulls took an 85-83 lead into the fourth quarter, aided by a five-point possession by Gordon. First he sank a technical free throw after a Nuggets illegal defense. Then Gordon completed a four-point play after getting fouled on a three-pointer.

"We have a lot of guys I'm having to depend on that really haven't had major roles in the league," Del Negro said.

kcjohnson@tribune.com

Keep up with the Bulls: For the latest news and views on Vinny Del Negro's team, check out K.C. Johnson's blog at chicagotribune.com/fullcourtpress