5 potential landing spots for Derrick Rose
The amount of guaranteed money handed out in the NBA this summer rivals the GDP of some small island nations, yet former MVP Derrick Rose is still without a job.
With that in mind, here are five potential landing spots for the embattled point guard, and what each team can offer:
Los Angeles Lakers
Make no mistake about it: Lonzo Ball is very much the future.
But the Lakers are in the market for a veteran guard to show Lonzo the ropes, and that's where Rose comes in. The Lakers tried this shtick with Rajon Rondo earlier this summer, but the New Orleans Pelicans won the bidding. Rose is plan B.
The two sides are reportedly meeting Thursday. The Lakers can offer more money than any other club on this list, but they will most likely limit any deal to one season so they can preserve their salary sheet for a busy summer in 2018.
What they can offer: Cap room ($10 million)
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavaliers are also hot in pursuit, as they're hoping to sell Rose on a chance to make the NBA Finals.
The Lakers can offer more money and a bigger role, but the Cavs will be far more competitive. A strong season with a winning club in Cleveland could help rehab Rose's reputation and land him a bigger contract down the line.
For the moment, however, Cleveland can barely offer more than the veteran's minimum. So will Rose take the money or the wins?
What they can offer: Remaining taxpayer mid-level exception ($2.5 million)
Milwaukee Bucks
Rose and the Bucks met July 3, but despite mutual interest, they haven't scheduled a second meeting. However, Milwaukee is still the front-runner to land the three-time All-Star.
Matthew Dellavedova and Malcolm Brogdon are solid glue guys, able to play supporting roles when Giannis Antetokounmpo is on the floor, but Rose is a far better scorer. His floor time with the Bucks could be staggered so the offense could run through him when the Greek Freak takes a breather.
Milwaukee is the best fit for Rose from an on-court perspective.
What they can offer: The full non-taxpayer mid-level exception ($8.4 million)
New York Knicks
Knicks general manager Scott Perry was a driving force behind the Sacramento Kings' culture shift this summer before taking the job in New York. That's already a strike against Rose, who had an up-and-down season in the Big Apple that started with a trial and featured an odd episode when he briefly went AWOL.
The Knicks had to renounce his Bird Rights in order to fit the Tim Hardaway Jr. contract under the salary cap, so that's no longer an option. It seems unlikely that a spurned Rose, who had hoped for a big payday this summer, will return to his old team at a significant discount. At this rate, he's running out of options.
What they can offer: Full non-taxpayer MLE ($8.4 million)
Minnesota Timberwolves
Rose played for Timberwolves president and head coach Tom Thibodeau from 2010-15 with the Chicago Bulls. Considering Minnesota brought on former Bulls Jimmy Butler and Taj Gibson this summer, it wouldn't have been a shock to see him join his former colleagues.
But with point guard Jeff Teague signing a three-year, $57-million deal right at the start of free agency, and Jamal Crawford officially signing to the room MLE on Wednesday, there isn't an easy way to sign Rose. Unless the team found a way to dump the salary of Cole Aldrich - owed $7.3 million next season, but guaranteed just over $2 million for 2018-19 - there's no way to add his scoring to the Wolves' bench.
What they can offer: Nothing, at the moment
(Photos courtesy: Action Images)