Derrick Rose to Knicks: Twitter Reacts to Trade Involving Robin Lopez
The New York Knicks and Chicago Bulls pulled off a blockbuster trade Wednesday that will send Derrick Rose to New York as part of a package that includes Robin Lopez and Jerian Grant, per Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical.
Shams Charania of The Vertical reported the Knicks will also be sending Jose Calderon to the Bulls as part of the deal. K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune added the Bulls are throwing in Justin Holiday and a second-round pick next year.
Knicks PR confirmed the moves on Twitter, noting the team waived point guard Tony Wroten as well.
Rose's name has been mentioned in trade talks recently, with the Knicks as a potential landing spot. ESPN.com's Ian Begley reported last Friday that the Knicks were having internal discussions about pursuing the former NBA MVP in a deal.
Naturally, with a deal of this magnitude taking place, NBA analysts on Twitter were quick to offer their opinions about what Rose's departure from Chicago and arrival in New York means.
BigHeadSports kicked things off in predictably snarky style:
While that was obviously a joke, Rose's durability has not been a strength over the last four seasons. He played in 66 games last season, his most since being named MVP in 2010-11.
There's an interesting bigger picture to look at for the Bulls after moving on from Rose, which the Huffington Post noted in GIF form:
If the Bulls go all-in on rebuilding, they could decide to deal Jimmy Butler this summer. This move, though, would seem to indicate that they are going to be building around the 26-year-old All-Star.
Tim Bontemps of the Washington Post, however, did point out that two of Chicago's key free agents are almost certainly going to find new homes:
ESPN's Zach Lowe noted how well the Bulls did in this trade considering where the market for Rose has gone:
Portland Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard had a one-word response upon hearing about the Bulls dealing Rose:
While there is going to be a lot of skepticism around this version of Rose, Jason McIntyre of the Big Lead is trying to take a more optimistic approach:
Nick DePaula of The Vertical presented an interesting business perspective that won't be the most talked-about aspect of the trade:
The good news for Rose is that he's trading up in terms of market, so there's no reason for his merchandise sales to decrease unless everyone decides his performance on the court has made it impossible to continue supporting him.
Aron Yohannes of Brew Hoop noted the Knicks could be well set up to win a title if they can somehow find a time machine:
SB Nation's Rodger Sherman pointed out both sides of the spectrum for the Knicks:
Moke Hamilton of Basketball Insiders highlighted how unrealistic some Knicks fans' expectations are:
Many are going to mock the Knicks for this deal because they have been a mess for so long, but this is the perfect sort of deal for the franchise.
Rose is entering the final year of his contract and is going to be 28 years old in October. His stock has never been lower, so taking a chance on him playing even remotely close to his past All-Star level didn't cost New York any significant part of its future.
The Knicks must resort to drastic measures to finish over .500 for the first time in four years. Adding Rose falls into that category. It's up to him to make this deal look good for New York.
