97.1 The Ticket -- The madness of NBA free agency has officially started. With teams and players free to meet and negotiate contracts after 6 p.m. on Sunday, many reported deals are coming to light, including a move by the Pistons.
ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported Saturday the Pistons were expected to sign free agent Derrick Rose to a two-year deal, and it appears it is offical. Wojnarowski reported Sunday evening that he has agreed to a two-year, $15 million deal.
Many fans and pundits expected the Pistons to wait things out a little bit after the first wave of signings, but they wasted no time in signing Rose, the former NBA MVP, who had a resurgent season with the Timberwolves in 2018-19.
Detroit entered the free agency period over the salary cap, with $9.2 million available in the mid-level exception, as well $3.6 million with the biannual exception. Both figures can be split among multiple players, but cannot be combined for one player. ESPN's Bobby Marks reported Detroit will use part of the mid-level exception to sign Rose. The Pistons will still have $2 million of the exception remaining. They now have a projected $125 million in salary with 12 players under contract.
Detroit will use part of the $9.3M midlevel exception to sign Derrick Rose. The Pistons still have $2M remaining of the exception and now have a projected $125M in salary with 12 players under contract. Detroit also has the $3.6M biannual exception. https://t.co/yrKY4Dbbsv
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) June 30, 2019Rose re-emerged as a high-caliber player last season, averaging 18 points, 4.3 assists and 2.7 rebounds per game with Minnesota and started 13 games. He appeared in 51 games last year, the most he has played in since 2016-17, when he played for the Knicks.
Rose, who has an MVP, Rookie of the Year and three All-Star nominations to his name, has been plagued by injury throughout his career, including a torn ACL that forced him to miss the 2012-13 season. But his renaissance in 2018-19 makes him a solid candidate to be a back-up point guard for the Pistons, who appear to be losing Ish Smith and Jose Calderon in free agency.
The Pistons don't have a ton of wiggle room with the cap this offseason, but are expect to have more than $41 million come off the books after next season, with the possibility that nearly $29 million comes off if center Andre Drummond opts out of his contract.
Detroit reportedly declined the option on forward Glenn Robinson III on Sunday, making him an unrestricted free agent.
