If there ever was a perfect example of a player that was simply more of a name than anything else it’s Derrick Rose.
The guy is a corpse, an empty jersey or someone who may catch a casual NBA fan off guard who’s perhaps thinking, “hey wasn’t he good in Chicago?”
Yeah for a few seasons he was pretty good in Chicago. There was a time when he was shooting almost .500 from field, averaging over 2o points a game and contributing wins in the double-digits when it comes to total win shares.
But lets be honest with ourselves, it’s been over five years since Derrick Rose has been worth a damn. And yes, I may be harsh considering the injuries but the NBA is for the most part a harsh business.
Take today for example.
The NBA trade deadline came and went and in typical League fashion there was more talk than movement.
Some of that talk centered on Rose himself and the notions of the Knicks shipping the name out of town.
But for who?
How about Ricky Rubio?
Yeah that Ricky Rubio who hasn’t sniffed the four’s in terms of shooting percentage ever, struggles to eclipse the double-digits for points and has for the majority of his career been nothing more than average.
But apparently Ricky Rubio is more of a commodity than Derrick Rose because the Timberwolves said thanks but no thanks when Rose was dangled straight up. This is according to ESPN’s Marc Stein.
At the finish line, league sources say, New York was prepared to trade Derrick Rose for Ricky Rubio straight up. But the Wolves balked.
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) February 23, 2017
Not that you can blame the T-Wolves. This season at least Rubio is a better player than Rose when it comes to total win shares. Rubio is according to the stat two wins better than Rose (3.7/1.7) who’s also averaging less than half of the assists the Minnesota guard is averaging (8.4/4.5).
Sure Rubio isn’t going to give you much from the field in terms of a shooting percentage but at this stage in either career isn’t the more capable and valuable player the guy who can create plays rather than try and be something they were over five years ago?