King James Gospel
Fansided

Cleveland Cavaliers: Could Derrick Rose be the permanent starter?

By Nathan Beighle

BEIJING, CHINA - AUGUST 31: NBA player Derrick Rose of the Cleveland Cavaliers meets fans at Hi-Park Basketball Park on August 31, 2017 in Beijing, China. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)
BEIJING, CHINA - AUGUST 31: NBA player Derrick Rose of the Cleveland Cavaliers meets fans at Hi-Park Basketball Park on August 31, 2017 in Beijing, China. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

While Derrick Rose is still new to the organization, his presence could be immediately felt for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

This offseason has been an interesting one for the Cleveland Cavaliers, especially after they flipped nearly half their roster. With that flipping came former MVP and New York Knicks’ point guard Derrick Rose.

Last season was a successful one for Derrick Rose for many reasons. For starters, the injury-prone point guard saw court time in 64 games, which means he missed just 18. Secondly, Rose returned to his volume-scoring self. He averaged 18.0 points per game which was the most for Rose since his injury in 2012 that downed him for the entire 2012-2013 season.

The only negative that can be taken away from Rose’s season was his lack of a consistent three-point shot. Playing alongside LeBron, it will be important for Rose to be able to hit wide-open threes instead of driving back into the traffic. Rose only averaged 0.2 threes per game and shot 21.7% which is the worst of his career from downtown.

The new Cavaliers’ point guard will undoubtedly begin the season as the starter. But, he is only in that role because the newly-acquired Isaiah Thomas is out for quite some time. According to Zach Lowe, if the recovery process for Thomas doesn’t go smoothly, he is at risk of missing the entire upcoming season. Whether that includes the postseason, which the Cavaliers will inevitably get to,  is still unknown.

Thomas will be a key to the puzzle for beating the Warriors, so hopefully, he is back in some form by the time the Finals roll around. That said, the chemistry that Rose makes with the starters could be enough to keep him there, or will it? In the NBA, chemistry is of utmost importance. But, in Rose’s case, his damage will be most effective on the second unit, in my opinion.

Why?

Simply because he will have sole control of the offense. The second unit will be composed of Rose, Osman, Shumpert, Frye, Zizic, and other players, but none of them are a high-caliber playmaker like Rose. Rose’s MVP season he scored over 25 points per game and dished out over 7 assists. His ability to control on offense is still there, as seen by his numbers last season.

Must Read: What is the ideal starting lineup for the Cleveland Cavaliers?

His inability to shoot and his ability to score will be best fit on one of the least efficient benches in the NBA. The Cavaliers need Rose on the second unit, but their wish won’t come true until Isaiah Thomas returns.