Should the Cleveland Cavaliers trade Derrick Rose?

After returning from a self-imposed mental hiatus and recovering from an ankle injury, should the Cleveland Cavaliers consider trading Derrick Rose?

Derrick Rose, the oft-injured point guard currently employed by the Cleveland Cavaliers, is an enigmatic presence on a team that has found it’s identity.

Since the start of the season, Rose has generally only shown the ability to do one thing well – drive to the hoop. However, while Rose possesses the ability to knock down jump shots and be a passing threat, he hasn’t been able to do either consistently.

Yet, there isn’t a single player in the Cleveland Cavaliers’ rotation incapable of hitting jumpers and, more importantly, every member of the Cleveland Cavaliers has become fixated on passing – it’s not just a passing fancy. Ball and player movement has allowed the Cavs to thrive on offense. In fact, the Cleveland Cavaliers average more points per game this season (111.4) than last season (110.3) and, this season, their offensive rating (113.3) is similar to what it was last season (113.6). How could that be the case for a team that traded away Kyrie Irving, the best isolation player in the NBA last season? A player who averaged 25.2 points per game while shooting 47.3 percent from the field and 40.1 percent from three-point range. A player whose ball-handling is the best in the league and ability to finish around the rim is the best of any NBA guard.

On the one hand, the efficacy of the Cavs’ bench unit. Headed by Dwyane Wade, who acts as the primary playmaker within the second unit, the Cavs’ bench thrives off of Wade’s ability to find his teammates, their fixation on getting the ball to Kyle Korver and their intent to move the ball around until they find a great shot (which doesn’t always happen but does happen consistently).

Say Rose replaces Iman Shumpert or Cedi Osman in the second unit. While he’ll be a better slasher, the others have better shooting range and reputations as shooters, so they provide better floor spacing. In addition, Shumpert and Osman keep the ball moving around where Rose is more inclined to attack. Can Rose balance his aggression with a desire to play complimentary basketball?

To this point, the answer has been no.

This has little to do with his lackluster assist-to-turnover ratio (0.63), as Rose has shown a desire to drive-and-kick on occasion and because 8 of Rose’s 19 turnovers were bad passes, a bulk of them can be chalked up to the team’s initial lack of chemistry.

However, Rose has been so fixated on his next NBA contract and proving his doubters wrong that he looks much more like a one-trick pony than a dynamic playmaker because of his shot selection.

On the one hand, Rose is converting 51.4 percent of his shot attempts on drives – that’s certainly a positive.

In addition, in practice and during pregame warmups, Rose can be seen knocking down corner threes.

Yet, when the ball tips-off, Rose seems to only think about getting to the rim. In fact, 48.2 percent of his shots come 0-3 away from the rim. 29.0 percent of his shots come from at least 16 feet away from the rim but for a player averaging 11.9 field goal attempts per game that means Rose is only taking 3.5 outside jumpers per game. Unfortunately, he’s been shooting 27.3 percent from 16-24 feet away from the rim and 23.1 percent from three-point range so as a result, he only converts a single outside jumper per game.

If Rose can keep his head up on drives and pass on more than 25.0 percent of them and if he can make more than one outside jumper per game, he’ll be able to fit in the offense. However, he’ll have to sacrifice shot attempts and touches he was getting before the Cavs found out feeding Wade and Korver was best for the second unit. Beside the starters, Rose would need to feed MVP-ready LeBron James, “Minnesota” Kevin Love and the shooters far more than he attacked.

Can Rose make that sacrifice?

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If it’s about the money, he has $80 million left to make in Adidas endorsements – so he should think about that more than the number of digits in his next contact.

If it’s about proving he’s a player who can be a valuable piece of a championship roster, he’ll make the sacrifice. If it’s about proving he’s a player who still has “it”, he might just need to find a team that could use an experienced, attacking point guard.

Looking around the league that could be a few squads: the Los Angeles Clippers, the Phoenix Suns and the Denver Nuggets come to mind.

None of these teams, save for the Clippers, have the pieces needed to make a blockbuster trade but trading Rose for a second-round pick or cash could be best for both parties regardless of the involvement of additional pieces.

Right now, the Cavs have to see if Rose can fit in and sacrifice. The chemistry will be tested with the arrival of Isaiah Thomas and the return of Tristan Thompson anyways. However, if Rose still seems fixated on himself or a diminished role causes him to mope around what’s been an upbeat locker room as of late, the writing could already be on the wall.

Hopefully, Rose can be a dynamic contributor just in a reduced role.

His future with the Cleveland Cavaliers is up to him.

Related Story: Does talent or fit matter more for the Cavs?

*Unless otherwise referenced, all stats gathered from www.basketball-reference.com