Title contenders Los Angeles Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers have expressed interest in trading for Derrick Rose. The Detroit Pistons have an opportunity to be sellers at the trade deadline.
The Los Angeles Lakers especially could really use a point guard. Alex Caruso and Rajon Rondo can only get you so far in the playoffs and while LeBron James can take all the playmaking responsibilities, someone has to hold the fort when he’s on the bench.
Enter Derrick Rose. The former MVP has impressed this year averaging 18.4 points and 5.8 assists per game in only 26 minutes per game. And he has done so with great efficiency — career-high 56.5 true shooting percentage—and a usage of 30.1%.
Yahoo! Sports’ Chris Haynes reported on Monday that the Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers have expressed interest in Rose. Getting ahead of the curve, Piston Powered’s Aaron Ferguson took a look at five trades for Rose, including the Lakers and Sixers.
Rose can be the primary ball-handler on the Lakers bench unit and solve a lot of their problems. That is a valuable asset right there and, in my estimation, it would take Kyle Kuzma to acquire. Markieff Morris could be included to replace Kuzma.
Both Rose and Morris are on great contracts and would be immediate rotation pieces for the Lakers title campaign. Kuzma, on the other side, is a 24-year-old big athletic wing on a great contract for two more years before he becomes a restricted free agent.
He can score, when given playing time, with medium efficiency. Maybe he improves as a scorer and passer. Maybe he tries playing defense as he sometimes has done in the past. Maybe not, but in any case, he’s on a rookie contract and scoring at that size has trade value.
The Pistons should try to pursue extra assets. The Lakers are not so happy with Kuzma’s role on a title contender and Kuzma isn’t either. Getting Rose and Morris for him would be a perfect midseason boost. This is where the 76ers come into the picture.
The Philadelphia 76ers are looking for shooters. Shooting is their major weakness as their two biggest stars, Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid aren’t exactly marksmen. They have already expressed interest in Langston Galloway and Luke Kennard, Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Galloway could immediately slip into their rotation and provide seriously needed depth. The 76ers have the biggest lineup in the NBA, so Galloway could go right ahead and guard the smallest opponent. That, he can do well.
And he can shoot. He’s been shooting 39.1% on five 3-pointers per game off the bench. The 76ers would like to use three-guard lineups off the bench as they did when J.J. Redick and Marco Belinelli where on the team. Well, that’s with Ben Simmons being the third guard, which created a lineup that torched the league as Simmons had room to attack and diss.
Avery Bradley and Galloway could try and recreate that magic with Tobias Harris and Al Horford completing the lineup. Are they the shooters Redick and Belinelli are? No. But they can shoot. Galloway has proved to be a knockdown shooter this year and Bradley has not. But he’s been a good shooter every other year of his career. And they’re both much better defenders.
Both would be inserted into the 76ers playoff rotation. To get that depth they would have to give up some assets. Zhaire Smith and two second-round picks seem like a fair deal. Smith is a 6-foot-5, 20-year old wing with a 6-10 wingspan that rots on a playoff team’s bench. He needs a team where he can be given time to grow.
In Detroit, he can develop his shooting and handles to go with his athleticism and defense. Jackson Hoy of the Stepien says the following about him.
"“His tenacious defense and ability to do the little things on offense a key part of Texas Tech’s surprisingly successful season. He faces real questions about his ability to add value on offense without a reliable jump shot or particularly advanced handle, but Smith brings a high floor with his athleticism, feel, and defensive versatility. If his offensive game develops faster than expected, he could emerge as one of the steals of the draft.”"
That’s a solid prospect for the Pistons to invest in and the two second-round picks are a nice sweetener. Philadelphia has the second-round picks of both the Atlanta Hawks and the New York Knicks, which project to be high. While the 76ers shouldn’t be inclined to add more rookies to their playoff rotation, the Pistons would be glad to get back young assets.
Mike Scott would have to be included to match salary. He should be a nice piece off the bench for the Pistons. The 76ers would also have to get rid of some more salary, so Trey Burke is going to LA.
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The Lakers — at least LeBron James — get exactly what they need and get rid of what they don’t really want. The 76ers get shooting, perimeter defense and veteran presence in exchange for their young assets. The Pistons get a couple of promising young players on rookie contracts, a veteran bench piece on a value contract and a couple of high second-round picks to play with.
They don’t get first-round picks or highly coveted youngsters. They get Kuzma and Smith, who they have to mold into good players. They get to develop, showcase them and maybe even trade them in the future. It’s too early into the organization’s rebuilding stages to tell.
Right now, the Pistons should focus on acquiring and developing talent and that’s probably the kind of young talent you can get by trading away expiring or soon to be expiring contracts. My estimation is that this is a fair deal for everyone involved or at least a good base for one.
Maybe some picks could be moved around during negotiations. In any case, that’s the kind of deal the Detroit Pistons should be looking to make.