Report: Knicks decline Rose's $15.6M option

The New York Knicks are declining veteran guard Derrick Rose's $15.6-million team option, making him an unrestricted free agent this summer, a source told Fred Katz of The Athletic.

Rose could still re-sign with the Knicks on a less expensive deal, Katz adds.

The 34-year-old former MVP fell out of the team's rotation last season, seeing the court in just one game after January. He averaged 5.6 points in 27 contests.

Rose can now test free agency after two-and-a-half years with the Knicks. It was his second stint in New York, coming over from the Detroit Pistons via trade in February 2021.

He spent the first eight years of his career with the Chicago Bulls before they dealt him to the Knicks in June 2016. He had brief stints with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Pistons before returning to New York.