Before pulling the trigger on the Kyle Lowry trade, the Miami Heat reportedly had interest in acquiring another veteran point guard.
Derrick Rose was once one of the NBA’s best point guards, and arguably its most athletically gifted one.
He was the first player chosen in the 2008 NBA Draft, and with averages of 16.8 points and 6.3 assists per game, he was named the Rookie of the Year in 2009.
Rose’s high-water mark was the 2010-11 season, when he put up 25.0 points and 7.7 assists a game en route to earning league MVP honors.
A series of injuries afterward threatened to all but end his career, but over the last couple of years, he has reinvented himself as a capable bench player.
Rose ultimately decided to re-sign with the New York Knicks, a team that badly needs scoring pop from the backcourt.
Although he is now 32, he could’ve given the Heat’s second unit a sizable boost had he signed with the team.