3 takeaways from Derrick Rose signing with Minnesota Timberwolves

2. Does adding Rose make sense?

Before Jimmy Butler went down with, ironically enough, a torn meniscus injury, the Timberwolves had the fourth-best record in a very tough Western Conference. While Minnesota did post wins against the Bulls and Sacramento Kings in their next two outings, the team has dropped its last three and is currently in a tie with the Oklahoma City Thunder for sixth spot in the conference playoff race.

Furthermore, the Timberwolves are just two games out the last playoff spot. With that being said, they need help to get things going in the right direction again. The question is, how does adding Rose to the equation help their cause?

Even without Butler in the mix, Minnesota’s scoring output since his departure (111.2 points per contest) is slightly better than its season average of 109.7. Although Jamal Crawford is in the twilight of his career, playing in his 18th NBA season, he is still a double-digit scorer who has the ability to put up points in bunches.

As of right now, Rose is expected to play a limited role behind Jeff Teague. The caveat here is how will this affect Tyus Jones’ role going forward, as he is the guy currently holding down the backup point guard spot.

While Jones’ numbers (4.9 points and 2.7 assists per contest) don’t jump off the stat sheet, the Timberwolves have a +6.8 net rating per 100 possessions when Jones is on the floor. This is second-highest mark on the roster behind Butler. Conversely, the Cavaliers were 5.4 points worse per 100 possessions when Rose was on the court.

Additionally, Jones is ranked ninth in Real Plus-Minus, while Rose is 469th in this category.

To drive the point home even further, Jones’ assist-to-turnover ratio is 3.9, while Rose averaged more turnovers per game (1.8) than he did assists (1.6) during his 16-game stint with the Cavaliers.

In other words, adding Rose to this roster won’t move the needle much, if at all.