The Chicago Bulls would love to trade franchise but oft-injured point guard Derrick Rose, according to a new report.
“They would love to trade him, the problem is there’s no buyer. You’re not going to take that contract with a guy with three knee surgeries since 2012,” Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun-Times said in an interview with Bleacher Report.
Rose signed a massive five-year, $94.3 million contract before the 2012-13 season. That means after this season, he still has two more seasons on his contract.
What’s worse is that his salary is steadily going up. He’s set to make $18.8 million this season, $20 million next season, and $21.3 million in 2016-17.
“The real dilemma and the real mess is going to be going into that final year of that contract negotiation, it’s going to be a real clown car,” said Cowley, explaining that Rose’s agent and supporters will be going around town saying that Rose has done everything he can for the Bulls and has had to suffer through multiple injuries.
Cowley believes Rose’s camp will try to argue that Rose deserves a new max contract, which at this point seems extremely unlikely. However, next season will give him a new opportunity to show if he can get back to anything resembling his former form, and perhaps play all or most of the 82 games in the regular season.
Either way, the Bulls may be forced “to watch him disappear in free agency, and hope someone takes him,” Cowley said.
“I think the days of him being a max contract guy are over.”
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