According to local outlet HoopsHype, “The Chicago Bulls are one of the teams that will be targeting free agent Derrick Rose this summer.”메이저사이트

Rose is coming off the worst season of his career, averaging 5.6 points and 1.7 assists in 12.5 minutes in 27 games this season. Injuries were a factor, but the biggest reason for Rose’s lack of playing time was a decline in form. Rose’s game has declined significantly since last season, and he’s seen his minutes dwindle in favor of younger, more athletic players like New York’s Miles McBride and Quinton Grimes.

Even though he wasn’t playing, Rose played an important role for New York. He mentored younger players and energized the locker room.

New York has a $15.6 million team option on Rose for next season. A team option is a player’s option to stay with the team if the team wants to exercise it, or to opt out of the contract and become a free agent if the team does not.

With last offseason’s acquisition, Jaylen Brunson, established as the team’s ace, and other up-and-comers like Grimes and McBride, it seems unlikely that New York will take a chance on Rose, who has become a non-roster player.

Rose’s return to Chicago seems timely in many ways. After missing the playoffs this season, the Bulls are in need of a turnaround. With Lonzo Ball, the team’s leading scorer, injured with no timetable for his return, the Bulls need someone to balance the two aces in Zach LaVine and Dermar Drozan. While his scoring prowess is gone, the veteran’s experience is hard to ignore.

Rose was a franchise star himself, born and raised in Chicago and drafted by the Cubs. In Chicago, Rose played eight seasons and won an MVP award, catapulting him to superstardom. Even after leaving Chicago, whenever Rose traveled to the city as an opposing team, Chicago fans always gave him a rousing welcome.

Next season, it will be interesting to see if the romance of Rose’s return to Chicago is fulfilled.