Derrick Rose Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Cavs Notes: Rose, Thomas, Wade, LeBron

November 27th, 2017 at 12:24pm CST by Luke Adams

Derrick Rose continues to stay in communication with the Cavaliers’ front office during his absence from the team, but his future in Cleveland “remains unclear,” sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN. Rose, who left the Cavs last Wednesday, isn’t healthy enough to play right now anyway, so the team has been patient with the point guard’s needs and hasn’t shown any indication of considering a fine or suspension for him, per Wojnarowski. Still, the situation will likely need to be addressed by the time Rose has recovered from his ankle injury.

As the Cavs wait for Rose to make a decision on his future, here are a few more notes out of Cleveland:

While Rose’s return is unclear, the Cavaliers remain hopeful that their other injured point guard, Isaiah Thomas, will be able to return to the court at some point in December, Wojnarowski notes in the piece linked above. Although Thomas published a tweet on Sunday hinting that his return is imminent, he’s still a few steps away from making his Cavs debut, says Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com.
Dwyane Wade will face the Heat on Tuesday for the first time as a Cavalier, and Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra says that seeing Wade in a Cavs uniform is “like the Twilight Zone,” per Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. “It will never seem right,” Spoelstra said. “For me, I hate it. But I’m happy for Dwyane. I’m happy for his family. I think he’s in a good spot. … I think the role that he’s in is going to be one of the most impactful roles in the league.”
Much has been made of Kyrie Irving‘s emergence in Boston after the offseason’s blockbuster Cavs/Celtics trade, but LeBron James is playing some of the best ball of his career in the wake of that deal too. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst takes a closer look at James’ dominance this season, including his tremendous fourth-quarter numbers.

Central Notes: Bell, Valentine, R. Jackson, Rose

November 26th, 2017 at 11:51am CST by Arthur Hill

Jordan Bell‘s jab at the Bulls after Friday’s game was a reminder of how many mistakes Chicago’s front office has made in recent years, writes K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune. The dynamic Warriors rookie made a money gesture during pre-game introductions and later said, “I wanted to see how cash considerations was playing over there.” Bell was drafted by the Bulls with the 38th pick and traded to Golden State for $3.5MM.

Chicago was focused on wing players at that spot, Johnson explains, and didn’t mind selling the rights to the pick once its prime targets were off the board. At the time, it was an indication that the team planned to re-sign free agents Cristiano Felicio and Nikola Mirotic and had faith in Bobby Portis and first-rounder Lauri Markkanen.

Johnson says the Bulls have to hope that Bell won’t be the latest successful young player they’ve let get away, a list that includes Gary Harris, Jusuf Nurkic and Tony Snell.

There’s more from the Central Division:

One young player who is offering hope for the future in Chicago is Denzel Valentine, who has started the past six games, notes Sam Smith of NBA.com. Valentine has improved his numbers to 11.2 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists per night in that new role and is getting used to small forward, where he is expected to battle for playing time with Justin Holiday once Zach LaVine returns from injury. “[You] come to an NBA team and the second year basically is like the first year until you gain that trust and prove yourself a little bit in the league,” Valentine said. “I haven’t proved myself yet, but I think I am inching my way to trusting, the coaches trusting me and me trusting the coaches.”
Friday’s win at Oklahoma City was important to Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson, who spent the first three-and-a-half seasons of his career with the Thunder before a 2015 trade to Detroit. “It was definitely special because I haven’t won in this building – except for playing here and being on this team, but I hadn’t won in this building with this team,” Jackson told Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press. “It’s good to get a team win like that and have these guys’ backs and find a way to get one is special.”
The Cavaliers knew physical problems were a concern with Derrick Rose when they signed him this summer, notes Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com. However, he worked out with LeBron James during part of the offseason and seemed worth the risk on a veterans’ minimum contract.

Latest On Derrick Rose

November 25th, 2017 at 6:17pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers are being supportive of Derrick Rose‘s decision to take time away from the team to ponder his NBA future, but two sources tell Chris Mannix of Yahoo Sports that the organization was blindsided by the news.

Cavs management considers his departure an excused absence and is marking it down as a “personal issue.” Rose is evaluating whether he wants to keep playing in the wake of his latest injury, a sprained left ankle that has sidelined him for the past eight games.

“I texted him and told him [that] we support him,” said coach Tyronn Lue. “He’s going through a tough time right now, but he’s still very talented. Take as long as he needs to take, we wish him well and we want him back.” Still, Lue admits he has no idea when Rose might return.

The Cavaliers have been significantly better without Rose, winning seven straight games to climb within a half game of the Central Division lead. That isn’t a coincidence, according to Mannix, as four knee surgeries have robbed Rose of his lateral movement and teams are exploiting him on pick-and-rolls. The offense has also functioned better in Rose’s absence.

Officially, the Cavaliers are saying they will welcome Rose back, but Mannix wonders if that’s true. And if Rose does decide to keep playing, it won’t be easy to win back the trust of his teammates, especially after his similar disappearance from the Knicks last year.

There’s no guarantee of an NBA future for Rose beyond this year, Mannix adds. Once his veterans’minimum contract expires at the end of the season, he may find no takers on the free agent market, with one executive comparing his situation to Deron Williams‘.

There’s more news on Rose as we wait to see what his future holds:

LeBron James and Dwyane Wade say they wish the best for Rose, but are confident his absence won’t affect the team, relays Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com. Neither player has talked to Rose since he left, but Lue sent a text assuring him that he still has a spot on the Cavs if he wants it. Wade said he also considered retirement because of injuries during the 2013/14 season. “Obviously I can’t say I understand what he’s going through, but I understand what he’s going through,” Wade said. “I definitely had a moment in my career a few years back where I was thinking about retiring myself. It’s hard when you’re dealing with injuries after injuries after injuries — it takes a toll on you mentally.”
Rose may not have a steady role on the team if he does return, Vardon notes in the same story. Isaiah Thomas will be the starting point guard once he recovers from his hip injury, while Wade runs the offense with the second team.
The Timberwolves gave strong consideration to signing Rose in the offseason, but decided against it because of concerns about his durability, tweets Jerry Zgoda of The Minneapolis Star Tribune. Minnesota coach/executive Tom Thibodeau was Rose’s coach in Chicago for his MVP season in 2010/11. The Wolves opted to pursue Jeff Teague instead.

Community Shootaround: Derrick Rose’s Future

November 25th, 2017 at 11:25am CST by marksuleymanov

It’s that time of the year when Derrick Rose‘s health brings up questions about how much longer his battered body can sustain the rigors of an NBA season. We noted yesterday that Rose is currently away from the Cavaliers and evaluating his NBA future. A source told ESPN that the former NBA Most Valuable Player is “tired of being hurt and it’s taking a toll on him mentally.”

Rose, 29, showed he can still score this season as he averaged 14.3 PPG in seven starts for Cleveland. But Rose has not suited up for the Cavaliers since November 7 and was expected to miss 2-3 weeks with an ankle sprain. The Cavaliers have experimented with several different lineups in Rose’s absence. The good news is that Isaiah Thomas, who was acquired in the Kyrie Irving trade, is making progress in his rehab from a hip injury.

“I don’t think it means too much for the team, but I think more importantly as one of his brothers, that’s somebody we got to know these last couple months,” LeBron James said about Rose’s injury (via Cleveland.com’s Joe Vardon). “We want, whatever he decides to do, we want the best for him. At the end of the day, you can’t substitute nothing for happiness.”

Head coach Tyronn Lue said he has communicated Rose and despite all the reports, expects the point guard to return at some point. If Rose were to retire, it would also have massive financial ramifications. While his NBA deal is a one-year, $2.1MM veteran’s minimum deal, Rose still has approximately seven years and $80MM left on his endorsement deal with Adidas, according to ESPN’s Nick DePaula. If the former Bulls standout were to file retirement paperwork, he would not receive a full payout from the endorsement deal, DePaul writes.

Rose entered the 2017/18 season with confidence. Last season in New York, Rose played in 64 games and averaged 18.0 PPG, his best work since his MVP season in Chicago. The Cavaliers made a minimal investment and Rose said to Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press that he will prove he can still be an impactful asset.

“When I get on a good team and I’m still hooping the same way, what are you going to say then?” Rose said. “The only thing that you’ll can say is that I can still play.”

Rose has shown he can still play but has not proven he can stay healthy.

What do you think? Do you think Rose will suit up for the Cleveland again this season? Is it smart for him to walk away from a lucrative endorsement deal? If he does resume his career, what would be the best way to manage his workload?

Derrick Rose Away From Cavs, Evaluating Future

November 24th, 2017 at 1:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Derrick Rose, sidelined since November 7 with an ankle injury, isn’t currently with the Cavaliers and is evaluating his future in basketball, according to Adrian Wojnarowski and Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Rose, who has been away from the Cavs for the better part of a week, has been plagued by health problems since winning the NBA’s MVP award in 2011, averaging just 38 games played over the last six seasons, not including this year. Those ongoing injury issues have the veteran point guard feeling overwhelmed, per Wojnarowski and McMenamin.

“He’s tired of being hurt and it’s taking a toll on him mentally,” one Cavaliers source told ESPN.

Rose, 29, signed a one-year, minimum salary contract with the Cavaliers over the summer, and was thrust into the team’s starting lineup when Kyrie Irving was traded to the Celtics, with Isaiah Thomas still recovering from his hip injury. However, Rose has been limited to just seven games so far, averaging 14.3 PPG and a career-worst 1.7 APG in those contests.

As a member of the Knicks last season, Rose unexpectedly left the team at one point to return to Chicago and missed a game, failing to explain his absence until after the fact. He was fined for that departure and apologized to his teammates when he returned. However, this isn’t a repeat of that situation — a Cavs spokesman tells ESPN that Rose’s current absence is excused.

Central Notes: Rose, Thomas, Liggins

November 17th, 2017 at 7:49pm CST by Austin Kent

The Cavaliers have been without Derrick Rose since November 7 and may be without him for at least two more weeks, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com writes. The club has announced that the veteran point guard’s sprained ankle will be immobilized in a boot and that he’ll undergo treatment through the end of the month.

Rose’s tenure with the Cavaliers hasn’t gotten off to as a good as start as some may have hoped after a relatively successful year with the Knicks. The 29-year-old has averaged 14.3 points per game but has only seen action in seven of the team’s 15 games this season.

The injured ankle that’s been plaguing Rose is the same one that the Cavaliers guard missed nine days due to from October 20 to October 29.

There’s more from the Central Division:

It wasn’t long ago when Andre Drummond was the subject of trade rumors due to his inability to hit free throws and a perceived lack of effort. These days, Vincent Goodwill of Bleacher Report writes, the Pistons big man has drastically improved his stock with head coach Stan Van Gundy and around the league.
Through 11 games with his sixth NBA team, DeAndre Liggins has impressed. The defensive specialist has made a name for himself as a gritty, energetic perimeter stopper and that’s served him well with the Bucks, Matt Velazquez of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel writes.
Injured Cavaliers guard Isaiah Thomas stands by his decision to forego surgery on his hip, Sam Amick of USA Today writes. “Every week now, every week I’m getting better and better. I’m doing more and more. I’m getting closer to being back on the floor and being able to play, so the only thing that is the frustrating part is the time.“

Cavaliers To Keep Derrick Rose On Minutes Cap

November 4th, 2017 at 9:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

The Cavaliers aren’t taking any chances with Derrick Rose‘s health, planning to keep their point guard on a firm minutes cap, reports Dave McMenamin of ESPN.

Sources told McMenamin that Rose will be limited to 28-31 minutes per game for the rest of the season. That figure was part of a long-term plan developed by coach Tyronn Lue, trainer Steve Spiro and Rose’s agent, B.J. Armstrong. They hope the limited workload will help preserve Rose for the playoffs.

Rose has missed four games this season with an ankle sprain, but has played well since returning to the lineup Sunday. He had a season-high 20 points in Friday’s win at Washington, scoring 13 in 10 minutes in the first quarter, but he played just 19 minutes after that.

“A minute restriction, there’s nothing I can do about that,” Rose said. “But with me having all these injuries in my past, I’m kind of used to it. But whatever the team sees and the staff sees and they want me to do, that’s what I’m going to cooperate with and just go about it the right way.”

Rose has a long injury history and hasn’t been the same player since tearing the ACL in his left knee during the 2012 playoffs. He played a combined 49 games over three seasons after that incident, but has increased that number to 51, 66 and 64 games the past three years.

He is coming off surgery for a torn meniscus in his left knee that ended his 2016/17 season in early April and may have scared away some teams on the free agent market. After not finding an offer to his liking, Rose accepted a one-year, minimum-salary deal with Cleveland in late July.

Even though he looked good Friday, Rose continues to feel the effects of the ankle injury. He admitted it still bothers him and left the arena wearing a compression sleeve.

“My ankle still isn’t there yet, so the second half it was getting stiff,” he said. “But I feel like I’m putting it together, quarter by quarter. Second half, I got to figure out a way to get my ankle back to, I don’t know, just make it a little more [pliable]. Warm it up a little or something. In the second half, I was obviously kind of stiff out there, but I believe in my teammates, and that’s one of the reasons why I came here.”

New York Notes: Jack, Dinwiddie, Rose, Hardaway

November 1st, 2017 at 9:37am CST by Luke Adams

Jarrett Jack is the only Knicks player on a non-guaranteed contract, which puts him at risk of losing his roster spot next week when Joakim Noah returns from his suspension. New York is currently allowed to carry 16 players, with Noah on the suspended list, but will have to get back down to 15 once the veteran center is activated.

While Jack’s place on the roster may be in jeopardy, he has been a common denominator in the Knicks’ wins so far, writes Fred Kerber of The New York Post. Jack has started three games at point guard, and those are the only three games the club has won so far. Although the veteran’s numbers are modest, his guidance and leadership abilities have drawn praise from head coach Jeff Hornacek, as Al Iannazzone of Newsday details.

“When things get crazy, he can get us into something and he kind of guides us too,” Hornacek said. “He’s a thinking point guard. If some guy hasn’t had a shot in a while, he’s going to figure out a way to get him the ball. If somebody’s hot, he’s going to figure out a way to give him the ball. He’s just a good team leader that way.”

As Iannazzone notes, Knicks president Steve Mills seems confident that the team will find a way to retain Jack once Noah returns. While the franchise figures out exactly how to do that, let’s round up a few more notes out of New York City…

Because he remained on the Nets‘ roster through October 31, Spencer Dinwiddie saw the guarantee on his 2017/18 salary increase from $50K to $250K, per Bobby Marks of ESPN. The young point guard has been one of Brooklyn’s most pleasant surprises early in the season, and his play is forcing the team to expand his role, writes Alex Squadron of The New York Post. The rest of Dinwiddie’s salary for this season will become guaranteed on January 10.
Derrick Rose admitted that he was interested in re-signing with the Knicks this past offseason, but in the wake of Phil Jackson‘s departure, the team didn’t reciprocate that interest. “I would’ve loved to come back. I loved playing there even though we lost,” Rose said, per Stefan Bondy of The New York Daily News. “The city itself, the fans, like everything about it. They made changes, Phil being gone. I would’ve loved being part of it.”
While Tim Hardaway Jr. has had a bumpy start to his first season in New York, the team’s $71MM man showed on Monday that he doesn’t necessarily need to score a ton to have an impact on a game, Kerber writes for The New York Post.

Central Notes: Mirotic, Cavs, Rose, Tolliver

October 30th, 2017 at 6:52pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Bulls power forward Nikola Mirotic will not have surgery on the facial fractures he suffered when teammate Bobby Portis punched him, team vice president of basketball operations John Paxson told George Ofman of WBBMNewsradio (Twitter link). Mirotic will have a light workout at the team’s practice facility on Tuesday, Ofman adds.

Mirotic was expected to miss 4-6 weeks in the aftermath of the altercation, but this development suggests a four-week absence is more likely. There has been speculation that the Bulls’ power forward would be willing to waive his no-trade clause to escape the tense situation but he cannot be traded until January 15.

In other news around the Central Division:

Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue believes some of his players are too timid because of LeBron James‘ presence, Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com relays. Lue expressed those feelings after an embarrassing loss to the Knicks on Sunday. “Guys have got to understand that LeBron, he’s a giving person, he’s a giving player,” Lue said. “You’ve got to come in and play your game and we’ll adjust. I think a lot of times we defer to LeBron or guys are scared to be aggressive because of that.” Vardon speculates that Lue was referring mainly to former Celtics forward Jae Crowder, who’s averaging 7.3 PPG on 6.6 shots per game.
Lue said that re-inserting Derrick Rose into the starting lineup was an easy one, as he expressed to Vardon and other media members. Rose scored 15 points on Sunday in his return from an ankle injury that cost him four games. “I thought those first two games we were really playing well, and especially defensively,” Lue said. “After that it’s been tough trying to maneuver guys in and out of the point guard position.”
Reserve power forward Anthony Tolliver has carved out a defensive role in the Pistons’ rotation, Rod Beard of the Detroit News notes. Though coach Stan Van Gundy has said publicly that second-year forward Henry Ellenson deserves steady playing time, Van Gundy has turned to Tolliver to guard the Knicks’ Kristaps Porzingis and the Clippers’ Blake Griffin in recent games, Beard adds. Tolliver is in his second stint with the team after signing a one-year, $3.3MM free agent contract during the summer.

Central Notes: Shumpert, Wade, Stephenson, Bucks

October 29th, 2017 at 9:08am CST by Arthur Hill

Iman Shumpert, whom the Cavaliers spent most of the summer trying to trade, was in the starting lineup for Saturday’s loss at New Orleans, notes Dave McMenamin of ESPN. The move was necessitated by injuries, as Derrick Rose continued to be unavailable with a sprained left ankle.

Rose wants to remain in the lineup once he returns, writes Jason Lloyd of The Athletic, and he was concerned he might have to sit out today’s game if he played Saturday. Coach Tyronn Lue recently moved Dwyane Wade and Jae Crowder to the bench and didn’t want to disrupt their new roles, so he called on Shumpert. The Cavaliers have used four different starting lineups in six games.

There’s more this morning from the Central Division:

Cleveland’s reported interest in Suns guard Eric Bledsoe is the latest sign that the addition of Wade isn’t working out, states Ira Winderman of The Sun-Sentinel. Wade, who asked to be removed from the starting lineup this week, is averaging 8.6 points through five games and is shooting just 43% from the field. Winderman suggests that Wade’s friendship with LeBron James blinded the Cavs to the reality that Wade can’t produce at an elite level anymore.
Pacers swingman Lance Stephenson hasn’t lost confidence despite a terrible start to the new season, relays Mark Montieth of NBA.com. In a reserve role for the high-scoring Pacers, Stephenson is averaging 6.2 points per game and shooting just 27% from the field, 13% from 3-point range and 38.5% from the free throw line. “I’m going to keep shooting,” said Stephenson, who came back to Indiana late last season after spending time with the Hornets, Clippers, Grizzlies, Pelicans and Timberwolves. “My confidence is never going to go down. In practice I don’t miss, so it’s probably just mental. A lot of rushed shots. Just stay poised and don’t get out of it. Bring it every game. I haven’t lost my confidence at all.”
When Myles Turner returns from the concussion that has sidelined him since opening night, Pacers coach Nate McMillan is considering using him together with Domantas Sabonis, Montieth writes in the same story. The move would put the team’s two best rebounders on the court at the same time. “It gives us some size, it gives us some versatility,” McMillan said. “We’re big, but we still have the speed and athleticism to defend and run our sets. “I look forward to getting to that as much as possible.”
Bucks guard Matthew Dellavedova is trying to use his experience to bring chemistry to a young team, notes Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times.