Derrick Rose’s NBA career has recently taken a steep nosedive as reports went out that the former league MVP has only been receiving 10-day contract offers after he was waived by the Utah Jazz on February 10. It has been an incredible turnaround for a player who was once considered, at least, a top five player in the world just a few years ago.
Rose had played 16 lackluster games with the Cleveland Cavaliers this season before he was traded to the Jazz at the deadline. He ended up averaging career lows of 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 19.3 minutes per game.
Bleacher Report cited an anonymous Western Conference executive as saying that Rose’s “injuries and lack of enthusiasm” have made teams think twice about signing him. The three-time NBA All-Star had struggled with injuries since he won the 2011 MVP award, appearing in only 100 regular season games over the next three seasons after that.
As for Rose’s lack of zeal, BR noted that it would be “impossible to get into the mind and heart of an athlete who has endured the suffering (with injuries) — and betrayal from his own body — that Rose has.”
However, Bleacher Report then claimed that a source close to Rose said that there is still hope for the NBA’s youngest MVP awardee and that it is “just a matter of trying to find the right fit for him and his talent.”
One team has emerged in the rumor mill as a potential landing spot for Rose, and that is the Oklahoma City Thunder. But with only one roster spot left, the Thunder are reportedly reserving the vacancy for someone else.
In a recent episode of ESPN’s NBA Countdown, senior NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski disclosed that Oklahoma City “ had interest in Rose ,” but the Thunder only has one roster spot remaining and former Los Angeles Lakers wing player Corey Brewer “is going to take that.”
Wojnarowski went on to say that Rose “does not have any offers” right now. However, it does not mean that Rose’s career has already ended as “he just needs to be on a team’s roster by the end of the season to be eligible for the playoffs.”
The NBA columnist believes that Rose could still return to play in the NBA before the postseason as he claimed that “teams have checked in on him” but “it may not come soon.”
