A look at the grades given to the Rose trade
How did the Derrick Rose-Knicks trade grade out? Which side "won"? Several of the national and some local beat guys have weighed in with their assessment. Here is a breakdown of the team grades and a brief synopsis on why it was graded in such a manner.
Kevin Pelton, ESPN Insider
Knicks, D+
Of course, the price of that flexibility is what New York had to give up in this deal. The Knicks now find themselves in need of a starting center, unless they believe Kristaps Porzingis can play the position fulltime. But that's probably a few years away. And their depth chart behind Rose is basically empty after they waived Tony Wroten to complete the deal a problem given Rose has missed 47 games over the last two seasons. There's also the question of how this all fits on the court. Not since his rookie season has Rose used less than 27 percent of his team's plays, which makes him the highest-usage teammate Carmelo Anthony has had since teaming with Allen Iverson in Denver.
Bulls, B
...Rose seemed to stand in the way of Jimmy Butler's ascendance to a larger role on offense. Butler is younger, better and under contract for longer than Rose. It's time for the Bulls to be Butler's team, provided the organization is committed to keeping him, and he played far better with Rose on the bench last season. The three years and about $42 million remaining on Lopez's contract look eminently reasonable in the context of the rapidly rising salary cap. I'd rather have Lopez on that deal than pay a free agent like Bismack Biyombo or Ian Mahinmi what they're likely to get this summer. In the meantime, Chicago can also try to rehabilitate Grant's value. The Notre Dame product was a terrible fit in New York's triangle offense as a rookie but could be more effective in an attack predicated on the pick-and-roll. Calderon also gives the Bulls a stopgap option at point.
Knicks, C-
Rose suffers from a number of major flaws at this point of his career: he can’t shoot from the perimeter, he can no longer break down a defense and get to the line like he did during his best seasons and he’s regressed considerably as a finisher. Making matters worse, he posted the worst defensive rating of any Bulls player who logged at least 1,200 minutes last season. With a 2016–17 salary of $21.3 million, Rose is in line to inherit the "Most Overpaid Player in the NBA" mantle from Kobe Bryant. New York will hope that Rose can benefit from a change of scenery and that his recognizable name will inject some excitement into a roster that’s incredibly lacking beyond Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis. That approach might prove successful on some nights, but it will make life even more difficult for Hornacek, who favored an up-tempo approach in Phoenix. With both Rose and Anthony expected to play major roles, the Knicks will need Hornacek to pursue a new style. The loss of the dependable Lopez shouldn’t be overlooked: His departure creates a giant hole in the middle for New York, who ranked No. 18 in defensive efficiency in large part because Lopez was able to stay healthy for all 82 games last year. Barring a major acquisition this summer or a significant step forward from Porzingis as an interior defender, the Knicks are in line to struggle mightily on defense next year.
Bulls, B+
From a financial standpoint, the move is a wash in 2016-17, as the combined salaries of Lopez, Calderon and Grant are roughly equivalent to Rose’s salary. Chicago did take on two additional years for Lopez ($13.8M in 2017-18 and $14.4M in 2018-19), but the big man is worth that price in the right system and he is a liquid asset. The Bulls can reasonably argue that by acquiring Lopez, who averaged 10.3 PPG and 7.3 RPG while posting a 17.6 PER last season, they got the best player in this deal. He excels at the little things—screen-setting, rim protection, offensive rebounding—that are crucial for a team with ambitions of returning to the postseason. Moreover, Lopez represents a bridge to the future in the event that unrestricted free agents Joakim Noah and Pau Gasol move on this summer as expected.
Knicks perspective (no grade given)
Rose is not the player he once was, and he's a really odd fit in the Triangle given his struggles with the 3-point shot (he barely eclipsed 29 percent from the arc last year) and the way he needs the ball. But with everything he's been through on the injury front, it's easy to forget he's still just 27 years old. At worst, Rose gives Carmelo Anthony another scoring weapon (Rose averaged just over 16 point per game last year), which will help Anthony. In some strange universe, Rose, Melo and Kristaps Porzingis give New York some semblance of an actual Big Three.
Bulls, B
In return for Rose, the Bulls solve their center issue with Joakim Noah's very-obvious intent to depart by adding Robin Lopez, a big man with a soft touch and really solid defensive instincts. He should fit well into what Fred Hoiberg wants to do. They also add Jerian Grant, a point guard who should really excel in Hoiberg's fast-paced system. Grant was a terrible fit for the Triangle but is a great fit for Hoiberg, and could really surprise, even with reports surfacing that the Bulls will look to add a point guard in Thursday's draft. Jose Calderon provides expiring money, and he's a veteran who can shoot and is a consummate pro. He can start if need be should the Bulls go young with their point guard options.
Chris Mannix of the Vertical, Yahoo Sports
Knicks perspective (no grade given)
Still: He's a ball-dominant guard joining a lineup with a ball-dominant forward (Carmelo Anthony) and a rising superstar who needs the ball. After defeating Donald Trump and replacing Lin-Manuel Miranda on "Hamilton" there is nothing more important in New York than developing Kristaps Porzingis. Rose attempted 16 shots a game last season. That would have been good for second on the Knicks – a tick ahead of Porzingis. A revived Rose, a revamped roster and the Knicks could well snap a three-year playoff drought. And even if they don't, the risk is minimal. The loss of Lopez is mitigated by the likelihood that Porzingis eventually moves to center, and New York will happily swap Calderon for Rose for one season. Grant is the wild card, and the 14.5 points he averaged in April suggests there could be a real player there. But he represents the only risk.
No Bulls perspective or grade given
Eric Freeman of Ball Don't Lie, Yahoo Sports
Knicks perspective (no grade given)
The Knicks angle is altogether more difficult to assess, because it's likely that this is just the first of several moves to come for team president Phil Jackson. Regardless of what happens over the next few weeks, Rose joins a team with one ball dominant scorer already in Carmelo Anthony. The greatest task for the Knicks will be to figure out a way for Melo and Rose to co-exist while simultaneously ensuring that high-potential big man Kristaps Porzingis gets to touch the ball enough to develop into a star. At first glance, it doesn't seem likely that either Rose or Anthony would be entirely happy with giving up the ball so much. Even if they're not, though, it's entirely possible it will be a lesser issue given that both have histories of missing notable time due to injury. That's not to say that Rose can't be beneficial to New York. While Rose depends on pull-up jumpers far more than he ever did in his best seasons, the Knicks desperately need a perimeter player who poses even the threat of penetrating the lane to collapse the defense. Melo was the only man on the 2015-16 roster who could do it, and an offense built around one such player is going to go through plenty of ineffective stretches. That sort of player is especially needed if Jeff Hornacek tries to play anything like the fast-paced offense he used as head coach of the Phoenix Suns. Rose also figures to benefit from leaving Chicago, where it was impossible to watch him without thinking of what might have been.
Bulls perspective (no grade given)
The Bulls' rationale for the deal is fairly clear — cutting ties with Rose a year before his contract expires allows them to speed up the process of rebuilding around All-Star Jimmy Butler. A city of Bulls fans will no longer have to assess Rose's health and form after every game in the mistaken hope that he suddenly morphs back into his pre-2012 postseason self. With Pau Gasol and Joakim Noah soon to follow him out the door, the Bulls can add new players that fit what head coach Fred Hoiberg wants to do instead of trying to force Tom Thibodeau's guys into unfamiliar roles. An opportunity for a fresh start made the deal worth it, even if defense-first center Robin Lopez, rookie point guard Jerian Grant, and veteran point guard Jose Calderon do not represent an especially bountiful harvest.
Stefan Bondy, New York Daily News
Knicks perspective (no grade given)
With the Knicks, Rose joins a team that desperately needed a starting point guard after Jose Calderon was frequently overmatched last season. He’s also now the lone teammate of Carmelo Anthony with an All-Star appearance, having been voted on the Eastern Conference squad three consecutive years before tearing his ACL in 2012. It goes against Jackson’s publicly preached philosophies of patience and continuity, but is probably more in line with what Anthony was hoping for from the offseason. In name recognition at least, the Knicks won the trade. Now they have to hope Rose stays healthy and regains the explosiveness that, for a very brief time, made him one of the best players in the NBA.
Bulls perspective (no grade given)
Lopez played well in his lone season with the Knicks after signing a four-year, $54 million deal last year, becoming an important reason Kristaps Porzingis was allowed to float outside of the paint and flourish. However, there’s a reason Lopez is already joining his fifth team in only nine seasons — he’s limited offensively and athletically, with a ceiling much lower than a healthy Rose. Grant, the No. 19 overall pick in last year’s draft, was acquired by the Knicks in a trade for Tim Hardaway Jr. He was inconsistent with sporadic minutes last season, as a pick-and-roll point guard who wasn’t accustomed to the triangle. He played 76 games, starting six, while averaging 5.6 points on only 39% shooting.
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