Rose joins Cavs — insurance in case Irving is traded
Derrick Rose’s goal is to win an NBA championship. He’s a little closer to one.
The free-agent guard signed a one-year contract Tuesday with the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team that has blocked his path to a title before and one that needs him now more than ever.
Rose is getting a one-year, $2.1 million deal — the veteran’s minimum, and all Cleveland could offer — from the Cavaliers, who now have a possible replacement for Kyrie Irving.
Rose gives the Cavs a proven player to handle point-guard duties if they choose to trade Irving, who recently told the team he wants to be dealt despite making it to three straight NBA Finals.
And though Rose is taking a substantial pay cut (he made $21.3 million last season with New York), he has his sights set on one thing only.
“I have a single focus and purpose of wanting to play to win,” he said. “Being part of a roster and organization that shares that type of commitment and being able to play with the Cavaliers and compete for a championship is the only thing that matters for me. I am very happy to be in Cleveland and look forward to getting to work.”
Warriors’ deals finalized: Stephen Curry finalized his contract Tuesday, signing a $201 million, five-year deal with the Warriors that initially was the richest ever, until James Harden topped it with a $228 million extension from the Rockets.
Curry, the two-time NBA MVP, who earned $12 million this season as one of the league’s biggest relative bargains, averaged 28.1 points in the playoffs with 6.7 assists and 6.2 rebounds. Now, he will earn $40 million per season.
NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant also signed his contract worth approximately $53 million over the next two years as Golden State announced its deals with returning free agents.
Starting center Zaza Pachulia has a $3.5 million, one-year contract. Andre Iguodala, the 2015 Finals MVP, received a three-year contract with $48 million guaranteed; fellow key reserve Shaun Livingston is getting $24 million and three years, and David West earned a one-year deal for the veteran minimum of $2.3 million.
Crabbe traded: The Trail Blazers traded former Cal guard Allen Crabbe to the Nets in exchange for forward Andrew Nicholson.
The deal, first reported by ESPN, comes a year after the Nets offered Crabbe a four-year, $75 million deal as a restricted free agent. Portland matched that offer.
At 6-foot-6, Crabbe averaged 10.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists last season with Portland. He hit 44.4 percent of his three-point tries.
“Allen has been a model teammate on the court and ambassador for the organization off the court,” Portland president of basketball operations Neil Olshey said in a statement. “He will be missed by all of us who shared the last four seasons with him.”
Briefly: Phoenix Suns backup point guard Brandon Knight tore his left ACL while playing in a pro-am game last week in Miami and will be lost for the coming season. Knight appeared in 50 games last season, averaging 11 points and 2.4 assists . ... The Hawks re-signed Mike Muscala to a two-year, $10 million deal. The 6-11 power forward, who was an unrestricted free agent, could play a bigger role as he returns for his fifth season following the departures of Paul Millsap and Dwight Howard . ... The Magic agreed to terms on a one-year deal with guard Arron Afflalo. He averaged 8.4 points and shot 41 percent on three-point tries last season for Sacramento.