Lakers Rumors: Los Angeles interested in signing Derrick Rose
By Nick Ziegler
Recent Lakers rumors have emerged about their interest in point guard Derrick Rose. Would he be a good addition for Los Angeles?
With the NBA offseason winding down, there hasn’t been as many Lakers rumors going around. However, they are still trying to finish off their roster.
All offseason, the Lakers have been trying to sign a point guard to likely backup Lonzo Ball. The Lakers have expressed an interest in players like Rajon Rondo, George Hill, and Tyler Ennis. However, they haven’t signed anyone yet, and options are starting to dwindle.
Recently, the Lakers have expressed an interest in point guard Derrick Rose. It wasn’t all that long ago that Rose was an MVP with the Chicago Bulls. Sadly, those days are long gone for Rose.
After suffering multiple knee injuries, Rose is not the same player that he was with the Bulls. Last season, Rose played for the New York Knicks. His stats weren’t awful in his one season in New York, but he played very poorly defensively and struggled to shoot the ball for most of the season.
In addition to the Lakers having an interest in Rose, the Cleveland Cavaliers are also interested. As a team with the potential to reach the NBA Finals, Rose would likely want to play with the Cavaliers if he wanted to win.
Cleveland is in serious talks with Rose, per @WindhorstESPN and @wojespn so Lakers will have to sell their environment as better than Cavs
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) July 20, 2017
While the Lakers should be better next season, they are going to have a hard time making the playoffs. At this stage in his career, Rose would be best-suited to come off the bench in a scoring role.
It is a bit strange to see that the Lakers have an interest in Rose. With Jordan Clarkson already coming off the bench as their likely sixth man, it would be hard to figure where Rose would fit in the picture as a scorer off the bench.
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Even though Rose averaged 18.0 points per game last season, the Lakers would likely be best to avoid him. As a player that needs the ball in his hands and likes to play 1v1, Rose doesn’t fit the mold of how Luke Walton and the Lakers want to play.