One of the most prevalent NBA trade rumors at the beginning of the season involved Minnesota Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau.
Since Thibs is also the team president and calls the shots at personnel decisions, most pundits believed that he would make roster moves to avert their early skid.
There were scenarios involving Luol Deng, Taj Gibson and Jimmy Butler but the pair that was traded to New York, Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah, was rarely mentioned.
Now, just days before the deadline, a report from Ian Begley of ESPN states that Thibodeau may want to call bring his top ward to the NorthWest.
"The Minnesota Timberwolves have reached out to the Knicks recently to discuss potential trades for New York point guard Derrick Rose, sources told ESPN," Begley reported.
It should be noted that Rose will become a free agent at the end of the season. This is his healthiest season and he averaged 17.7 points.
Begley continued: "It is unclear what Minnesota would offer in a potential trade for Rose. Sources say the Timberwolves are motivated to trade veteran point guard Ricky Rubio, as team president and coach Thibodeau sees rookie Kris Dunn as the point guard of the future for Minnesota."
While Rubio might be the obvious choice to be traded, the Timberwolves can also include Shabazz Muhammad and Gorgui Dieng as trade chips. However, they are not the only team that's making calls about the former MVP.
Speaking of point guard of the future, the Knicks appear to have yet to find their own. It's not Rose, and as Ananth Pandian of CBS points out, you can't really blame the Knicks on this one.
"For the Knicks, this could be a sign that they have no plans to re-sign Rose in the offseason when he becomes a free agent. Rose has played just fine, averaging 17.7 points while shooting 46 percent but he hasn't truly helped move the needle in New York. Also, in a rather bizarre incident, Rose skipped a game this season to be with his family but neglected to tell the Knicks or anyone else about his whereabouts."
This season was an experiment for the Bulls, probably a last stand for Carmelo Anthony and his "timeline." That was the motivation for acquiring Rose and Joakim Noah for that matter. Now, the team wants to build around Kristaps Porzingis and build a team that fits his learning curve.