After being traded to the Knicks on Wednesday, Derrick Rose held his introductory press conference with the New York media on Friday and covered a variety of topics, such as his obliviousness as to why he was traded to begin with, his eagerness to play with Carmelo Anthony, and the possibility of reuniting with one former teammate who might be on his way out of Chicago soon as well. Here’s what he had to say about free-agent-to-be Joakim Noah potentially signing on with the Knicks this summer:
“Oh, I want him. He knows that. I think his family knows that. I think everybody knows that,” Rose said. “Even last night, I was talking to him about it. It’s the same way. He’s in the position where he got injured twice last year. It was his contract year, and he’s got to figure out what he wants to do, so I can’t get mad with the decision he will make soon or whenever he makes it, but he knows that I would want to play with him.”
On the surface, it’s not such a bad idea. The Knicks packaged Robin Lopez as part of the Rose deal, which in addition to clearing out a little more than $13 million in cap space, opened up a frontcourt spot in the starting lineup. Playing Noah at center could offer even more opportunities for Kristaps Porzingis to use his range to operate as a stretch-four. But given the way injuries have hampered Noah’s play the past two seasons, his long-term health is a legitimate concern.
Complicating matters further is the recent rumor that the Wizards are considering offering Noah a max contract this summer somewhere in the neighborhood of $120 million over four years, obviously hedging their bets on him being able to regain some of that form that earned him the Defensive Player of the Year award just two seasons ago. If that’s true, it’s a hefty price tag that the Knicks should be extremely wary of before making such a huge commitment, seeing as how they just added one injury-prone star from Chicago to their rotation.
