Los Angeles Lakers are looking to maintain the balance in their roster. It was a miracle that the 17-time champions made the postseason in 2023. But the credit goes to the front office to bring balance to their team’s roster. This was a shock, as the Lakers had a terrible start to the season due to a lack of balance. But after the front office made some quality changes right before the February trade deadline, the Lakers squad looked like a championship-winning team.
From the 13th seed, the Los Angeles Lakers rose to the top six for a while. However, in the end, the LA side was the seventh seed of the Western Conference. They shocked everybody to reach the conference finals. Other than Anthony Davis, LeBron James, and Austin Reaves, the new players played a major role in taking the team to the WCF. Hence, the front office would like to keep the team as it is as possible. Moreover, purple and gold do not have much space in their budget. But there is a chance the Lakers can sign the 34-year-old point guard Derrick Rose.
Derrick Rose Is A New Free Agent. Will Lakers Show Any Interest?
The presence of LeBron James and Anthony Davis takes up a lot of their cap space. Hence, they have a little less than a $30 million to offer a new player for the long term. It is clearly not enough for a star-level player. But it seems like the Lakers can afford to sign a three-time All-Star and 2011 MVP from the New York Knicks, Derrick Rose. Recently, the Knicks declined the team option on Rose worth $15.6 million. According to Newsday’s Steve Popper, the deep bench point guard can help the Lakers in a rotation role for a championship run. Moreover, Popper suggests that the 34-year-old point guard, who is now a fresh free agent, may look for a new team.
Certainly, Steve Popper feels Rose would not want to go back on the same road to join the Knicks. Derrick Rose has become injury-prone as he had to undergo several knee surgeries. However, Rose remains a skillful scorer as well as earns a lot of respect in the locker room. There are four teams that can buy Derrick Rose; Popper feels the Los Angeles Lakers is one of them. The other three teams are Chicago Bulls, his hometown team who drafted him in 2008, plus Boston Celtics and Phoneix Suns. Steve Popper believes these four teams can have real rotation roles for the 2023-24 season.
Rose Is Not A Great Prospect For The LA Fans
Moreover, Derrick Rose played with LeBron James for a season back in 2017-18 with the Cleveland Cavaliers side. But it is not clear how much Rose can contribute at 34 after suffering so many knee injuries. However, the Lakers can offer him a veteran’s deal with the minimum amount.
But if Rose joins the Lakers, he will get another chance to win his first championship next year. Moreover, the Memphis man is a lackluster defender and not a very good jumper, either. On top of that, he is not suitable for many rosters, let alone the Lakers. The LA side needs some willing passers and quality shooters to support Anthony Davis and LeBron James.