The New York Knicks' trade for Derrick Rose shifts the club's free-agency priorities -- both for this summer and beyond.
Below, we take a look at some of the implications of Wednesday's deal:
Frontcourt help: With Robin Lopez gone, the Knicks will need to find a center this summer. Some members of the organization want to make a push for Bulls center and soon-to-be free agent Joakim Noah, sources say.
Another potential Lopez replacement, though an unlikely one, is Dwight Howard. The Knicks are one of several teams Howard would consider in free agency, per league sources.
The Knicks' interest in Howard is unknown. But given that they have significant money committed to Rose ($21.3 million) and Carmelo Anthony ($24.6 million) next season, it would be surprising if they pursued Howard, who is likely to garner a deal equal to or greater than Rose's 2016-17 salary.
It's also worth noting here that the Knicks and Phil Jackson pursued big man Pau Gasol in the summer of 2014. Jackson and Gasol remain close, so it wouldn't be a huge surprise if New York considered Gasol in free agency this summer.
The Knicks, of course, can't focus solely on the center position in the offseason. Rose is the only point guard on their roster at the moment (the club surprisingly waived Tony Wroten on Wednesday). So the Knicks also will be looking for a shooting guard and backup point guard in the offseason.
Cap implications: The Knicks still have approximately $30 million in cap space this summer, the same as before the Rose trade.
That number would jump to $35 million if the club renounced all of its free agents, including guard Langston Galloway and forward Lance Thomas. The guess here, though, is that both Galloway and Thomas will be back.
But the Knicks likely will have competition for both players. The Thunder, Nets and Mavericks are among the teams who are expected to have interest in the 28-year-old Thomas, sources say.
It's worth noting here that the Knicks saved $3 million in cap space this summer by trading for Rose on Wednesday. If they dealt for Rose in July, the Knicks would have had to pay a $3 million trade kicker, according to The Vertical.
Where the Rose trade really impacts the cap is in the summer of 2017. By trading Lopez (a strong defensive center owed a team-friendly $13.8 million in 2017-18) and Grant (a promising first-round pick owed $1.7 million in '17-18), the Knicks freed up approximately $14.5 million in cap space for the summer of 2017.
They currently have just three players under contract for 2017-18 and $30 million in committed salary. That number will change once they add free agents this summer, but the Knicks will likely have enough money to add one maximum salaried player in the summer of 2017 with plenty of money left over.
The 2017 free-agent class includes Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook and Chris Paul.
Does Rose help with Durant? The Knicks will pursue Kevin Durant this summer, but the guess here is that they remain a long shot to land him.
As reported here earlier this month, Durant has told friends that he's a big fan of Knicks rookie Kristaps Porzingis, whom he dubbed a "unicorn" last season. So that bodes well for New York. Durant also has a relationship with Knicks star Carmelo Anthony.
So how would Rose factor in? People around the league familiar with Durant's situation believed the Knicks would need to upgrade at point guard to be serious contenders for the 2013-14 MVP. They did that on Wednesday. Does Rose make the Knicks serious contenders for Durant? Only Durant knows the answer to that, but I'd doubt it.
The guess here is that the Rose trade makes it more likely that the Knicks get a sit-down with Durant and his agent, Rich Kleiman of Roc Nation Sports.
What about on the court? Kevin Pelton has a strong breakdown
of Rose's game and how it may impact the Knicks. ESPN Stats & Information also has a great breakdown of Rose's numbers.
Here are a few notes from those pieces:
Per ESPN Stats & Info, the Knicks drove to the basket an NBA-low 15.5 times per game last year. That number should increase drastically with Rose on the floor. He averaged 8.9 drives to the basket per game on his own.
If Rose can stay healthy (he has played in 40 percent of his games since the start of the 2012-13 season), it will be interesting to see how possession usage is divided among Rose, Anthony and Porzingis.
Pelton's Insider piece notes that Rose has used at least 27 percent of his team's plays while on the floor in each in each of the past six seasons.
Anthony last year used 29.7 percent of the Knicks' plays while on the floor; that was his first usage rate under 30 percent since coming to New York.
Will Porzingis' touches and shots decrease with Rose and Anthony on the court? It's something that bears watching in Year 2 for the big man.