Former Chicago Bulls: Derrick Rose-Lakers trade rumors heating up

As trade rumor season really heats up ahead of the 2020 deadline, a former Chicago Bulls point guard, Derrick Rose, could be on the move soon.

The Los Angeles Lakers look to be pursuing a former prominent superstar and MVP winning point guard of the Chicago Bulls from the early-to-mid 2010’s, Derrick Rose, current of the Detroit Pistons. D-Rose was the main reason why the Bulls were usually considered NBA Championship contenders year in and year out in the early 2010’s.

Alongside the former defensive star and gritty center Joakim Noah, D-Rose and the Bulls were a real force to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference from about 2009-2015.

Oh how the times can change.

Now, D-Rose is finding more success and staying healthy with smaller market teams in the northern part of the United States. Last season, he was a Sixth Man of the Year award contender with the Minnesota Timberwolves before he tore his UCL at about the 50-game mark and was out for the rest of the year.

This season is seeing D-Rose as a potential Sixth Man of the Year contender once again, and he’s a dark horse to make a late run at his first NBA All-Star appearance since 2012. This would be his fourth All-Star Game selection of his lengthy, but injury filled, NBA career.

So far this season, D-Rose is averaging 18.3 points per game, 2.4 rebounds, and 5.9 assists while shooting 50.3 percent from the field and 31.8 percent from beyond the arc. He’s already got around 2.5 win shares on the season and is posting a solid player efficiency rating of 22.4.

A lot of the advanced numbers for Rose this season are better than they were in his hay day a little less than a decade ago with the Bulls. That is a testament to the long road back from all the knee injuries that D-Rose had to take to get where he is now.

However, with all the solid production from Rose from the last two seasons, he’s drawing a lot of trade interest. The Pistons aren’t in a good spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race, and thus D-Rose is possibly available on the trade block ahead of the deadline next month.

According to a report on Jan. 20 from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports, the Lakers and Philadelphia 76ers are expressing interest in a possible trade package with the Pistons for Rose. Both the Lakers and Sixers look to be title contenders in their respective conferences if they can put it all together at the right time.

Here’s what the meat of the report from Haynes of Yahoo Sports had to say about the Lakers and Sixers trade rumor involving Rose.

"Rose, 31, is garnering considerable interest that wasn’t there when he was a free agent last summer. He has been the Pistons’ most consistent offensive weapon this season and his play has thrust him into consideration for the All-Star Game, which takes place in his hometown of Chicago next month.With the rash of injuries the Pistons have endured and Rose playing well, the veteran guard last week asked for an extended role with more minutes, sources said."

The Lakers sit at the top of the Western Conference standings at the moment, with a record of 34-8. They sit 4.5 games ahead of their crosstown rival Los Angeles Clippers in the standings. But the Sixers hold a worse record than the Lakers, sitting at 29-16 on the season. That puts the Sixers in the sixth spot in the East.

The Pistons and Bulls are in more similar positions in the Eastern Conference standings. The Bulls own a record of 16-28 as they enter a tough Jan. 20 road game against the Central Division foe Milwaukee Bucks. The Pistons have that same record after a loss to the Washington Wizards on Jan. 20.