Derrick Rose (Photo : Jonathan Daniel | Getty Images Sport)
The long injury history and recent comments by former MVP Derrick Rose has the trade talk abuzz again.
This is not just now, as early as April this year, the Bulls, according to this video by Bleacher Report has declared that they "would love to trade Derrick Rose."
They point out numerous factors that led to this assumption. Aside from the injuries, they pointed out that Rose is not a max player anymore and he could leave via free agency. Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times pointed out that "contract negotiations will get ugly" between the Bulls and Rose's brother and agent BJ Armstrong.
In this year's media day, Rose's comments on free agency at the end of the 2017 season also left a bitter taste among fans who got the impression that Rose is selfish and only looking after the money.
Because of this, Hang Time Blogtable thought the questions was a legitimate one to ask: Is it time for the Bulls to trade Derrick Rose?
Responses were mostly in the negative, or to take a "wait and see" approach. Lang Whitaker, though, had a different point of view.
"If I was Chicago, I'd be willing to move Rose, but I just don't know who you get back who can match what Rose brings," he said. "Last year, when he was returning from injuries and fighting other injuries, Rose still averaged almost 18 ppg, which is no small feat.
He adds: "The other issue in trading Rose would be finding a team willing to take on the remaining two years and $40+ million on his contract. But even if Rose is never the again the same player that won the MVP, Derrick Rose is still a marquee name and top talent. And there are a few teams in major markets - Brooklyn, Boston, New York, the Lakers - who probably wouldn't mind adding another superstar to their mix."
To this end, Hoops Habit suggested that the Philadelphia 76ers, whose owner, as the article points out, is getting "antsy" could acquire Rose to fast-track their development. After all, they are collecting assets to swing a trade like this.
HH pointed out that the Sixers' tanking has amassed frontcourt assets - Jahlil Okafor, Nerlens Noel, Joel Embiid if he recovers and Dario Saric. Their point guard rotation, though, is a mess.
Taking Rose as their franchise player will have the former MVP leading the offense. The Sixers may have to part with all their future assets and maybe one big to facilitate this, but the risk may well be worth it.
