MMiranda: Rose is facing a civil suit, accused of sexual assault. None of us can pretend to know if he's guilty or not guilty. And he isn't even the only Knick being accused to assaulting a woman. Rose's trial would begin the first day preseason. Most organizations you'd trust to be aware of such details going forward; some you could even trust not to get involved in anything potentially this ugly. One of Phil Jackson's first moves was to trade Raymond Felton as soon as possible after an incident involving a gun and Felton's wife. I thought that was exhibit A in Madison Square Garden's new age of awareness. Instead I feel like Phil's one of the guys now...and some of those guys were deemed legally responsible in Anucha Browne Sanders's 2007 sexual harassment lawsuit.

Malcolm wrote: MMiranda on Jun 24, 2016, 8:49a
http://www.postingandtoasting.com/2016/6/24/12017148/point-counterpoint-is-the-derrick-rose-trade-good-or-god-awful

1. How good is Derrick Rose?

MMiranda: The player the Knicks acquired is not Derrick Rose, MVP. Not Derrick Rose, All-Star. Not even Derrick Rose, above-average point guard. Rose's PER was below the league average last year. His true shooting % was the worst he's ever had in a (mostly) full season. He can't shoot. He can't defend. He hasn't been "Derrick Rose" since 2012. 2012! That means the Knicks have been good more recently than Derrick Rose.

How far have expectations sunk when we console ourselves with "Well, he's better than what they had"? Rose's PER (13.5) was barely higher than Jose Calderon's (12.3) and well behind Robin Lopez's (17.6). Any faith in the idea of Rose as an upgrade is dependent on him being healthier and productive than he's been in years. How does an injury-prone point guard who can't shoot or defend help?

Last but not least: Rose is heading toward the last meaningful free agency of his lifetime next summer. He's spoken before about how important that is to him. Knowing that, and knowing he's probably only a one-year rental for New York, can we reasonably expect him to accept being a tertiary option behind Carmelo Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis?

2. How good is Robin Lopez?

MMiranda: Gooder than Rose, but not great. So the question isn't "Why would you trade Lopez?" but rather "Why trade him now?" Lopez was coming off a pleasantly surprising 2016. If he was at the height of his value, why waste it on an expiring contract run-down Rose? Next summer, when RoLo's contract would be an even better deal under the rising cap, wouldn't someone in a league awash with cash say "Yes! Give me a quality center on a market-friendly contract for only 3 more years!" This trade feels more and more like the poor man's Andrea Bargnani deal, i.e. you gave up that for this?

Let's say the Knicks add Joakim Noah or Pau Gasol. Are either of those guys are better than Lopez? Short answer = no. Long answer = no, and on top of that...

3. What is Phil Jackson's plan?

MMiranda: The one unquestionable benefit to the Rose trade is it gives the Knicks more cap room next summer. Phil Jackson took over this team more than two years ago. He's overturned the entire roster since then (almost twice!). And after all that...we're still waiting for the future?!

Do we trust Phil Jackson in free agency? Is he gonna dump his 11 rings on the table and voila! instant superteam? Last summer Jackson made 4 major signings. Arron Afflalo and Derrick Williams opted out after one year; Afflalo's a goner (I'm cool wit dat), and D-Will isn't a move-the-needle talent. Kyle O'Quinn got a four-year deal and all we've seen from him so far is that he may not be as good as Jason Smith and he's been charged with assault (we'll come back to this). Far and away Jackson's best signing was Lopez, who has essentially been traded in for future cap room. That's like buying a $1,000,000 scratch-off ticket, winning, then spending your winnings on a million dollars worth of scratch-off tickets.

What is the value of cap space going forward, especially when the entire league will have cap space next summer and a lockout looming? LeBron James will probably be technically available. So will Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Maybe other guys, too. Maybe not. What if you don't land one of the big fish? Then it's 2010 all over again, with nine figures worth of dollars burning a hole in your pocket to give to the latest Amar'e Stoudemire.

4. Does Madison Square Garden care at all about the messages it sends?

MMiranda: Rose is facing a civil suit, accused of sexual assault. None of us can pretend to know if he's guilty or not guilty. And he isn't even the only Knick being accused to assaulting a woman. Rose's trial would begin the first day preseason. Most organizations you'd trust to be aware of such details going forward; some you could even trust not to get involved in anything potentially this ugly. One of Phil Jackson's first moves was to trade Raymond Felton as soon as possible after an incident involving a gun and Felton's wife. I thought that was exhibit A in Madison Square Garden's new age of awareness. Instead I feel like Phil's one of the guys now...and some of those guys were deemed legally responsible in Anucha Browne Sanders's 2007 sexual harassment lawsuit.

Who cares what MMiranda thinks?? lol