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Timberwolves Rumors: Interest in Derrick Rose?

By Ben Beecken

Nov 30, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; New York Knicks guard Derrick Rose (25) during a game at Target Center. The Knicks defeated the Timberwolves 106-104. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 30, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; New York Knicks guard Derrick Rose (25) during a game at Target Center. The Knicks defeated the Timberwolves 106-104. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports /
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According to ESPN.com, the Timberwolves have reached out to the New York Knicks regarding point guard Derrick Rose.

Can you feel it? The trade deadline draws nigh…

Indeed, things are getting kind of batty as we enter the homestretch of NBA trading season. The latest rumor, reported by ESPN.com’s Ian Begley, surmises that Tom Thibodeau has reached out to the Knicks to discuss acquiring Derrick Rose.

Rose, of course, played several seasons under Thibodeau in Chicago before knee injuries sabotaged the one-time NBA Most Valuable Player.

Begley does not speculate when it comes to what Minnesota might have to send to New York in order to land Rose — obviously a key aspect of evaluating any potential deal.

On Twitter Monday night, ESPN 1500 and KSTP reporter Darren Wolfson vouched for Begley, although he is unable to verify the rumor himself.

Indeed, Thibodeau has shown a clear pattern of reported interest in former Bulls players, from the likes of Luol Deng, Joakim Noah, and E’Twaun Moore in free agency to Rose and, apparently, Nikola Mirotic via trade. Of course, we don’t know how much of this is overeager reporters connecting dots that are only faintly there, at best, versus how seriously Thibodeau has been courting his old friends.

In terms of Rose himself, well…put simply, he has not been a good player since his age-23 season back in 2011-12. That was the third of three-straight All-Star seasons, including the MVP campaign of 2010-11, and while Rose only played in 39 games before suffering another injury, he was playing well before once again being sidelined.

The series of knee injuries limited Rose to 100 games over three years from 2011-14, and since 2012, he’s been downright awful. Rose’s assist rates have been significantly down, and his free throw rate has plummeted as the once-explosive guard has settled for jumpers far too often -which wouldn’t be a huge problem if he was a good shooter, but he remains decidedly below-average from the perimeter.

Rose simply does not get to the rim much anymore, and when he does, he lacks the explosion to draw fouls as he used to.

It’s hard to imagine a shoot-first, average-at-best jump-shooting point guard with low efficiency and poor peripheral numbers replacing Ricky Rubio and improving the team — not with all of the scoring talent at the other positions.

Next: Timberwolves Rumors: Interest in Iman Shumpert

This doesn’t seem like a trade that is likely to happen. And if it does, it’ll be hard to swallow for Wolves fans. As good as Rose was through his age-23 season, he’s been much worse since then.