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The Deal: Kyle Kuzma and Quinn Cook for Derrick Rose

LeBron James and Rose had a brief run as teammates for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017-18. It went terribly.

They played fewer than 500 possessions together, but Cleveland's minus-6.7 net rating with those two on the floor ranked in the 20th percentile, per Cleaning the Glass.

Things are different now. Like Grant Hill, Rose may have needed more time to fully recover from his injuries than others do. Or, perhaps he's finally adjusted to playing with the level of athleticism he now possesses, as opposed to what he had as a 22-year-old MVP.

Either way, it's easy to see how this version of Rose could fit with the Lakers.

This season, L.A. is plus-11.3 points per 100 possessions with LeBron on the floor and minus-0.2 with him off. The team has a desperate need for playmaking when the King is on the bench, and Rose could provide that.

Losing Kuzma, one of the only intriguing prospects on the roster (if he's still young enough to fit that description), isn't ideal. After a slow start to the season, he's more than perked up of late, averaging 19.3 points over his last six games.

But there's a lot of positional redundancy with Kuzma, LeBron, Anthony Davis and Jared Dudley. He's also nowhere near the table-setter Rose is.

The veteran point guard's game would offer a short-term upgrade despite the loss of size and youth. For an organization firmly in the win-now phase of team-building, that's fine.

Detroit, on the other hand, would get a 24-year-old Michigan native who just averaged 18.7 points in his second NBA season. Kuzma certainly has his shortcomings as a defender and playmaker, but he offers more long-term potential than most of the rest of the Pistons roster.

He and Sekou Doumbouya could eventually form an intriguing positionless forward duo.