Detroit Pistons: 3 possible trade destinations for Derrick Rose

Rumors are already swirling around the ultimate destination of Detroit Pistons guard Derrick Rose. If he’s traded, these three teams could be the best fits.

When you’re playing on a team-friendly contract and then outplay your salary, you’re destined to be trade bait. In the case of Detroit Pistons guard Derrick Rose, who is also wildly popular with players and front offices around the NBA, that’s the case tenfold.

Rose was rumored to be a key trade piece last season around the trade deadline, but nothing ended up panning out. He wasn’t eager to be moved, and the Pistons didn’t find a deal that appealed to them. With another year on his contract, there wasn’t a rush to get something done, but he’ll be a free agent after this season so the clock is starting to tick.

According to Sean Deveney of Heavy.com, a trade involving Derrick Rose and the Los Angeles Lakers is much more likely this season than it was last, and that makes sense for the defending NBA champs. Of course, there will likely be a robust market for his services, so we’ll take a look at the four teams most likely to try to acquire him sometime before the next trade deadline and evaluate just what a transaction might look like.

Along with the Lakers, the LA Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers all could make a case for his services. First things first, though, let’s take a look at the Lakers.