Knicks Trade Rumors: Top Eastern Conference team interested in Derrick Rose
Not much has been said about New York Knicks veteran guard Derrick Rose, but that’s mostly because he last played on Dec. 31. Similar to Cam Reddish (who hasn’t played since Dec. 3), Rose has been stashed on the bench with the trade deadline looming.
According to Marc Stein (subscription required), the Knicks are “open to finding a new home via trade for former MVP Derrick Rose” but the team wants to “do right” by him. Rose has been linked to the Mavericks, who just traded for Kyrie Irving, but reportedly one top Eastern Conference team is interested in Rose with the deadline being tomorrow (Thursday) at 3 p.m. ET.
On Tuesday evening, Stein reported (subscription required) that the Bucks have “expressed trade interest” in Rose. However, Stein noted that it’d be difficult for Milwaukee to take on Rose’s $14.5 million salary. Trading Rose to the Bucks would certainly be a “do right” move as Milwaukee hopes to win its second title in three seasons, but is it actually going to happen?
Bucks reportedly interested in trading for Knicks veteran Derrick Rose
Milwaukee has been linked to Cam Reddish as well, who will almost certainly be traded ahead of the deadline. As Marc Stein wrote, the Bucks have been interested in Jae Crowder for some time now, so based on their interest in him and their need for another wing player, the likelihood of Rose ending up with Milwaukee before Thursday’s deadline doesn’t seem high.
After the Knicks’ 102-98 win over the Magic on Tuesday, Tom Thibodeau spoke about one of his favorite players. He said:
"“He’s been great. In whatever role you ask Derrick to play, he embraces it. He’s always been a team-first guy. So I know he’s always ready,” Thibodeau said before the Knicks faced the Magic at Amway Center. “He contributes in a lot of different ways to our club.“As far as the trade stuff, there’s a million trades that get talked about and very rarely does anything get done. So I always want him to be around.”"
Thibodeau has raved about Rose being a team-first player multiple times and if New York does end up securing a playoff berth, the 34-year-old veteran would continue to be a valuable voice amongst a young team. However, Rose entered the season fully healthy, so although Thibs would like to see him remain on the roster past the deadline, he could contribute to a contending team elsewhere.
Will that team be the Bucks? Or will Derrick Rose stay in NYC?
