The never-ending soap opera surrounding Bulls star Derrick Rose continued on Thursday, and it has nothing to do with another unfortunate injury.

Joakim Noah emotionally defended his teammate after Rose received another round of criticism for saying part of the reason he sits out games is because he’s thinking of his life after basketball.

“I just, I don’t want to see him down. I know sometimes it’s frustrating, you got injuries, you got tweaks,” Noah told reporters after the Bulls beat the Raptors on Thursday night, a game which Rose left with a “minor” hamstring injury.

“Every time something happens to him, people act like it’s the end of the world. And that’s f—ing so lame to me. Relax. Like, OK, he’s coming back from two crazy surgeries. Obviously we’re being conservative with him, and when things aren’t going right, he’s got to listen to his body more than anybody. So everybody needs to chill the f— out. I mean, I’m sorry for cursing, but I’m really passionate. I don’t like to see him down. And he doesn’t say that he’s down, but I don’t like it when, like, people portray him and judge him. ‘Cause it’s not fair to him. It’s not.”

Charles Barkley disagrees.

The TNT analyst ripped Rose’s comments as “stupid” during “Inside the NBA” on Thursday night.

“That was stupid. Derrick Rose is a great player, he’s a great kid. Love his mom. That was stupid. You know, Ernie [Johnson], we’re so blessed. I limp around, but I go home to a big ol’ mansion. There’s people who work harder than Derrick Rose who go home to a shack,” Barkley said.

“There are consequences to what we do for a living. We got the best life in the world. I’m a poor black kid from Leeds, Alabama, who grew up in the projects and listen, I don’t mind limping around because when I go home, there’s a big ol’ house. I got good sheets — I don’t know the thread count, but they’re good. I got a big ol’ car. I never have to worry about my bills. There are pros and cons to what we do for a living. Derrick Rose is making $20 million a year. He got a couple bad knees. That’s disrespectful to maids, people who are in the Army who go out and kill people and get killed. They got no arms and no legs. As much as I like Derrick Rose, that is just flat-out stupid.”

Rose has missed most of the past two seasons first with a torn ACL then a torn meniscus. He was criticized by fans and media for not returning for the 2013 playoffs after suffering the ACL injury in the first game of the 2012 postseason.

Rose has sat out four of the Bulls’ nine game this season while easing into the grind of an NBA season. The Bulls are 3-1 in the games Rose has missed and 4-1 when he’s played.

“I don’t want to be in my meetings all sore or be at my son’s graduation all sore just because of something I did in the past. Just learning and being smart,’’ Rose said earlier this week.

The 26-year-old said he had cramping in his hamstring and does not expect it to be an issue after the victory Thursday. He did not back down from his comments.

“It’s like on to the next,’’ Rose said, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. “Just try to keep it moving. It’s a new day. Just trying to think about the team.’’

Rose added that he could “care less” about his detractors.