Now that the NBA postseason is almost over, the offseason will begin and teams in the gutter will have to make a lot of adjustments to become playoff contenders again. It’s rumored that the Bulls are looking at their trade options for Derrick Rose. Rose hasn’t been himself since coming back from tearing his ACL, now that the Bulls are being open about getting rid of Rose, here are the teams that could use Derrick Rose’s talents the most.
Brooklyn Nets
With the terrible season that the Nets just had (21-61), they could use all the help they can get. The only reliable option they really have in Brooklyn is Brook Lopez. One of the most underrated Centers in the NBA had close to no help this year, outside of Lopez (20.6 PPG), Thaddeus Young was the only Nets player to average over 13 points per game (15.1 PPG). Jarret Jack’s season was cut short when he tore his meniscus early in the year. Since the Nets only have one draft pick in the 2016 draft (Round 2 Pick 55), they won’t be able to experiment with a promising, young guard. It could be a great move for the Nets to see if Derrick Rose could fit in their offense and try to find his groove once again. With very little hope on this upcoming season, the Nets should make a move fast, because it’s pretty hard to see them having a worse year than this last one.
Memphis Grizzlies
Recent rumors have spread around the league that the Memphis Grizzlies have an immense chance at losing Mike Conley to free agency this offseason. If the Grizzlies can no longer keep Mike Conley, they’ll have to go to drastic measures to get a point guard and stay competitive next year. After Conley and Marc Gasol got injured this year, the Grizzlies went downhill ever since; including getting swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the playoffs, where they only lost one game by less than 21 points. The best option for Memphis at point guard, may be for Derrick Rose. Rose is still a good scorer, he’s been very inconsistent as of lately, but with a lineup of Marc Gasol, Zach Randolph, Matt Barnes, Tony Allen and Derrick Rose, it wouldn’t take too much out of Rose to make sure the Grizzlies can stay competitive and get to the playoffs for the 7th year in a row. Conley averaged 15.3 points per game to go with 6.1 assists per game, while D-Rose averaged 16.4 points per game and 4.7 assists per game on the 42-40 Chicago Bulls (Memphis ended season with same record). As long as Rose can find a role on this team and do half of the work that Mike Conley did for the Grizzlies, he may be able to find a home in Memphis.
Philadelphia 76ers
It’s pretty self explanatory why the 76ers are here. Philadelphia for the past 3 years has went 47-199 and need to look for almost anything they can to turn their franchise around. Now that they have the number 1 draft pick, it’s almost a given that they’re going to get one of the two biggest names in the draft (Ben Simmons and Brandon Ingram). With the 76ers pretty loaded in their frontcourt (Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Joel Embiid) and their upcoming draft pick being a forward, they need to look into some good guards to compliment their big men. Derrick Rose already has his foot through the door in the NBA with an MVP award, he’d be a great veteran presents for a team with 11/15 players that have 2 years of experience or less. Not only could he help out these young sixers with maturing, he could also find a way to mature himself and find a comfortable offense with coach Brett Brown’s team.
New York Knicks
The Knicks have been a disaster to say the least, with Carmelo Anthony (31 years old) being their team leader and scoring leader (21.8 PPG), New York is in a very uncomfortable spot. They’re trying to look into the future with Kristaps Porzingis (14.3 PPG – 7.3 RPG) looking like a promising player in this league already at 20 years old, the Knicks need to figure out their identity. Are they looking to rebuild after 3 very forgettable seasons in a row, going 86-160 in the past 3 seasons, or trying to build a playoff contending team now? If they want to rebuild, they need to give Carmelo Anthony a new contract to get rid of his no trade clause and look for some trade considerations for him. But if the Knicks are looking to contend as soon as possible with their star Carmelo Anthony only getting older, this may be their best move to make. Derrick Rose has shown flashes of the MVP we all remember from 2011, but needs to find consistency and something to get him to a perfect fit if he is no longer going to be able to perform up to par from 2011. New York is not only a great town, but is a team that needs a point guard more than any team in the league. Jose Calderon, Langston Galloway, Jerian Grant: if any of these names sound like a point guard threat to you, than maybe the Knicks don’t need to look for a new one; but given the fact that none of these players averaged over 8 points per game or over 5 assists per game this year, it would probably be best for them to look into other options. Derrick Rose could be that guy or the missing piece that the Knicks have been looking for, a lineup with Robin Lopez, Kristaps Porzingis, Carmelo Anthony, Aaron Afflalo and Derrick Rose could be a very intriguing and competitive team in the Eastern Conference.
Indiana Pacers
The Indiana Pacers lost some huge pieces of their roster that went to two straight Eastern Conference Finals (2013, 2014). Luckily, they still have Paul George and now have young prospect Myles Turner. The Pacers roster may not be among the very best in the league, but since they made it to 7 games in the playoffs this year against the 56-26 Toronto Raptors, they’re doing something right. With their starting guard, George Hill’s points per game average dropping 4 whole points this year (12.1), the Pacers are starting to see that he isn’t the right guard to compliment Paul George. Hill’s numbers should’ve exploded this year after losing David West, Luis Scola and Roy Hibbert. The Pacers could become a great offensive threat and not longer only be known for their defense (3rd defensive rating in NBA), with the addition of Derrick Rose. Having Paul George, Derrick Rose and Monta Ellis all on their offense, could immediately turn them from a 7th seed to a top 3 seed in the East. If Rose can find his groove on the Pacers, Paul George could finally have a 1-2 punch in Indiana and the Pacers could make their way back to the Eastern Conference Finals again with a very versatile roster on both sides of the ball.
