Derrick Rose trade season has officially started for the Detroit Pistons.
Today, Shams Charania reported (paywall) that at least two teams had interest in trading for the Pistons’ guard.
The Knicks and Clippers are among the teams interested in Pistons guard Derrick Rose, sources tell @ShamsCharania.
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) January 26, 2021
More on that and other trade buzz from around the league here.
👉 @TheAthleticNBA
The two named are the Knicks and Clippers, which isn’t surprising.
The Clippers are looking for any way to keep up with the Lakers in the West and would love to add to their depth.
The Knicks are better than expected and think they can compete for a spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs.
The Detroit Pistons are rebuilding and currently have the worst record in the NBA. Derrick Rose is taking minutes from their young guys and is their best trade chip, so it makes sense that they would want to move him.
Detroit would love nothing more than to start a bidding war, as it potentially raises the value of Derrick Rose.
We also know that Kevin Porter Jr. just netted a second-round pick which gives us an idea of what Derrick Rose might be worth in a trade.
Can they get a real asset for Rose? Let’s take a look at what a trade might look like with either the Knicks or the Clippers.
Detroit Pistons: Trading Derrick Rose to the Knicks
The New York Knicks finally have a decent group of young talent and are currently the 8th seed in the East.
The Knicks have been rebuilding for about 800 years so they would like to actually make the playoffs for once and Derrick Rose might help get them there.
They aren’t likely to give up any of their promising talent for Rose but they might give up a project and a pick:
In this trade, the Knicks get some guard depth and a career 18-point scorer on the final year of his deal.
Rose seems like a good fit with the Knicks, as they would love to have some more recognizable names, so they could likely re-sign him at a reasonable rate and put him on the bench for a few years.
The Pistons take back Dennis Smith Jr. who isn’t part of the Knicks rotation. If he works out, great, if not he walks and it costs them nothing. The real prize would be one of the Knicks’ first-round picks.
They might want additional protections on the pick, but this gives you an idea of what the Detroit Pistons might be able to get back.
Detroit Pistons: Trading Derrick Rose to the LA Clippers
Dealing Derrick Rose to the Clippers won’t be as easy, as they don’t have a first-round draft pick until the year 3000 and the only second-rounders they have are the ones Detroit sent them in the Luke Kennard deal.
The Clippers don’t really have a contract the Pistons would want, so in reality, this would very likely take a third team.
I really don’t see any way to make this work without a third team, but if the Pistons had interest in getting back all of the 2nd-Round picks they lost, this would be one way to do it.
Oturu does not play a position the Pistons need and Patterson is just salary filler, so I don’t see this being a good deal for Detroit.
Maybe the Clippers would be willing to give up a 1st-round pick well into the future but otherwise this need a third team.
The Detoit Pistons could have a bidding war for Derrick Rose on their hands and I am sure Troy Weaver is scouring the league for the best deal.