NBA Trade Rumors: LA Lakers Could Swap Talen Horton-Tucker For Derrick Rose
Detroit Pistons point guard Derrick Rose is one of the veteran players who are expected to be moved before the 2021 trade deadline. The former MVP may remain committed to the Pistons, but with the team heading into an inevitable rebuild, most no longer see him finishing the 2020-21 NBA season in Detroit. In the past months, Rose has already been linked to several title contenders that are in dire need of a backcourt boost and scoring off the bench.
One of the top landing spots for Rose before the 2021 trade deadline is the Los Angeles Lakers. In a recent article, Brett Siegel of NBA Analysis Network suggested an idea on how the Lakers would be able to add Rose to their roster this season. In the proposed scenario, the Lakers would be sending a package that includes Talen Horton-Tucker, Markieff Morris, and a 2025 first-round pick to the Pistons in exchange for Rose.
Though they already added Dennis Schroder last offseason, Siegel believes trading for the former MVP would still make a lot of sense for the Lakers.
“You can never have too much talent in the backcourt in today’s NBA and even though LeBron James is the primary ball-handler for the Lakers, he still needs reliable guards that he can turn to and feel comfortable with. Not only would Rose play his role off the bench perfectly, but he would have a great relationship with LeBron James because of their experiences against one-another. Bringing in Derrick Rose in a title defense season makes perfect sense for the Lakers because he is in the final year of his contract and would not be a burden on the Lakers’ payroll moving forward.”
The Lakers would definitely think twice before moving Horton-Tucker. He’s currently one of the most promising talents on their roster and if he continues to improve on both ends of the floor, he has a strong chance of becoming a legitimate superstar in the league. However, with the team seriously aiming to defend their throne this year, they would benefit more from adding a quality veteran like Rose.
Rose’s lone season of playing with LeBron James in Cleveland may have been a disaster, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that the same thing would happen if they team up once again in Los Angeles. Compared to his stint with the Cavaliers, Rose is now in much better shape and has shown significant improvement with his performance in terms of floor-spacing. Though he won’t admit it, he would definitely prefer to spend his remaining years in the league contending for the NBA championship title than mentoring young players on a mediocre team like the Pistons.
