Milwaukee Bucks: Derrick Rose pursuit isn’t surprising
By Adam McGee
In spite of outcry among certain sections of Milwaukee Bucks fans, the team’s pursuit of former MVP Derrick Rose is not surprising.
As momentum has continued to build around reports of the Milwaukee Bucks’ interest in free agent point guard Derrick Rose, so has the negative feeling toward the idea of signing the former MVP among large sections of the fanbase.
From a basketball perspective, that sentiment is certainly understandable. Although Rose still posts respectable per game numbers, he’s considerably less efficient than he was at his peak, is plagued by chronic injuries to both knees, and makes for a puzzling fit with the Bucks due to his lack of shooting ability.
As much as fans rarely like to consider it, personnel decisions aren’t always made solely based on what a player can offer in a strict basketball sense, though.
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The NBA is big business, and the Bucks are at a point in time where their business considerations are arguably as important as they have been since the organization’s inception in 1968.
With a combination of private and public funding, the Bucks currently have two new arenas (one which includes an expanded entertainment district), and a state-of-the-art training center under construction.
Although the current ownership has been in Milwaukee long enough to make a variety of significant decisions — shaping opinions both positive and negative — it’s still relatively early in their tenure.
Having purchased the team in 2014, majority owners Marc Lasry, Wes Edens and Jamie Dinan are still in the process of working toward their vision for what the Bucks can be. On the court that has led to the overuse of buzzwords such as “championship culture” and “DNA”, but from their earliest stages in ownership there has also been an emphasis on enlivening and expanding the fanbase.
That process kicked off with the obvious marketing move of a full rebrand and redesign of the team’s logo and jerseys in 2015. One stated goal of that decision was the hope of seeing Bucks gear pick up a wider reach and appeal in the state of Wisconsin — akin to the Packers, Brewers and Badgers.
With the recent purchase of a D-League franchise in Oshkosh, that idea has been expanded further. Rather than narrowing the franchise’s name to primarily feature Oshkosh or the Fox Valley area, the Bucks opted for the more inclusive Wisconsin Herd for their minor-league affiliate’s identity.
While in the most obvious business senses the Bucks have seemed to be making inroads on those goals, there’s now evidence of that at least becoming a bonus element in personnel acquisitions.
Former Badger Bronson Koenig was an excellent shooter in college who could become a rotation contributor for the Bucks in the coming years, but there’s also no doubting the business advantages of the team’s decision to sign him to a two-way deal.
That contract will allow Koenig to spend some time in the NBA, if the Bucks need him to, while primarily being a member of the Herd in their inaugural season. Not only does this create potential for Badger fans to snap up Koenig jerseys for both the Bucks and Herd, but it also gives the Oshkosh franchise a star name to draw in fans right from opening night.
Again, that’s not to say Koenig won’t prove to merit his spot from a basketball standpoint, but there are undoubtedly off the court benefits to begin with too.
If the Bucks and Rose do come to terms on a deal, he could be a further expansion of those principles.
As news of Jason Kidd confirming his team’s interest in Rose began to circulate on Friday, an interesting piece in the Chicago Tribune was also making the rounds.
In an interview with the Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein, Bucks president Peter Feigin spoke of the team’s intention to continue to build on their growing fanbase, by potentially attracting visitors from across I-94.
"“How do we let Illinois residents,” Feigin wondered, “know we have a world-class arena?”"
One way to pique the interests of those from the neighboring state and its biggest city would be to add Rose. Before injuries took a stranglehold on his career, Rose was not just thrilling the United Center as an MVP-caliber performer, but also doing so as a Chicago native and one of their own.
As the Bulls head into a full rebuild, Greenstein noted in that piece how the Bulls boast only Dwyane Wade as a player with a local connection. If the Bucks were to pair Rose with fellow Simeon alumni Jabari Parker, it suddenly wouldn’t seem all that far-fetched to imagine more visitors from Illinois.
Of course, with ticket sales already underway for the new arena, one of the Bucks’ leading priorities is having the team in position to attract big crowds upon its opening.
With Giannis Antetokounmpo as the team’s star and an ever-weakening Eastern Conference, the concern isn’t going to be simply making the playoffs. In some ways, that gives the Bucks a little more freedom.
While the most avid NBA fans are familiar with Rose’s recent struggles, that likely doesn’t apply for the more casual observers who could prove to be the difference in filling out that new building on a nightly basis.
Rose is a former face of Adidas basketball, and the only player outside of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry and Russell Westbrook to have been named as the league’s MVP in this decade.
None of this makes Rose any better as a basketball option in 2017, nor is there any reason to suggest that making personnel decisions based on business considerations is a strategy that promises to turn out as anything other than an unmitigated disaster down the line.
Next: Milwaukee Bucks: Examining the 2017 version of Derrick Rose
Still, it’s important to acknowledge how the lines between business and basketball could blur for an organization with obvious motivations to recoup recent sizeable investments. In other words, while it’s understandable for Bucks fans to be puzzled by their team’s interest in Rose, it would be untrue to say there’s no reason why the franchise might want him.