Cavaliers G Derrick Rose last week returned to the team after a brief absence, but said that the reported $80M remaining on his Adidas contract, which he was in "jeopardy of losing should he have decided to walk away from the NBA for good, was not his motivating factor in his return," according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. Rose said, "I don't care about -- not to be rude -- I don't care about no f---ing money. It's not about that. I've saved up enough money" (ESPN.com, 12/8). YAHOO SPORTS' Ben Rohrbach noted Rose is "still due" roughly $11.4M annually from Adidas for a "massive endorsement deal he signed" in '12. But Rose would "not be eligible for the remainder of that contract should he file his retirement papers with the league." Rose has made more than $100M in his 10-year playing career, and he has "already cashed in" on another $100M of the Adidas contract he signed five years ago, so it is "not like he needs the money." Still, if he were "contemplating retirement -- as he reportedly has upon leaving his teams twice in the past two years -- it would be hard for anyone to walk away from an eight-figure salary" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 12/8).
