Report: Rubio to play for MIN next season?

[Eja117]

He sucks. Plain and simple.

He averaged like 7 points, and 4 assists last season in the Euro leagues. He's on the decline, just getting worse. No wonder Kahn wants him to play.

Brandon Jennings had similar numbers.  Rubio is still very young, and most NBA scouts think the potential is there for him to be a very good player.

I think the lockout will probably prevent him from coming to the NBA this season, though.

You would think that people would know by now not to blindly extrapolate numbers from Europe.

I admit I did that with Tiago Splitter in my fantasy draft. There went a 12th rounder

[soap07]

He sucks. Plain and simple.

He averaged like 7 points, and 4 assists last season in the Euro leagues. He's on the decline, just getting worse. No wonder Kahn wants him to play.

Brandon Jennings had similar numbers.  Rubio is still very young, and most NBA scouts think the potential is there for him to be a very good player.

I think the lockout will probably prevent him from coming to the NBA this season, though.

You would think that people would know by now not to blindly extrapolate numbers from Europe.

Okay, so serious question. I don't know anything about the Euro Leagues, don't follow them at all. How do you judge if Rubio or any other European player has legit NBA potential or not? What kind of indicators are you supposed to look for?

[jgod213]

I think most of us still aren't quite sure how to evaluate talent from Europe.  If you look purely at the numbers you won't be impressed by many players overseas...

Take Mike Batiste for example, he just made first team all-euroleague and lead Panathinaikos to a title.  His stat line for the season: 13ppg, 5.5rebs, 1 ast, 1steal.  Forget 1st team all NBA, you won't even sniff a 3rd team honerable mention with a line like that over here.

Further - Batiste isn't even a starter; rather, Ian Vougioukas starts and sees roughly 5 minutes of action before being subbed out....If all that doesn't tell you how much the two leagues differ i don't know what would.

Regardless of how you slice it, Rubio still did have a down season - his shooting percentages were just plain bad.  Seems like he doesn't quite fit alongside mainstay Juan Carlos Navarro.  But still, he's never really been a "scorer," he's a faciliator and a teammate first.

This whole "i don't want to go to Minnesotta" thing has sullied his image and gives off the notion of a "me" guy, but i don't think that speaks for his play.  Probably overhyped due to his success as a young teen, but he's still only 21 years old and is a seasoned professional, i would think he could come into the NBA and see a reasonable amount of success right away.

[gotjoker?]

I'm uncertain of whether or not Ricky Rubio will ever prove the naysayers wrong that he belongs in the NBA. Nonetheless, this has to be good news if you're a Minnesota fan.

Jonny Flynn will more than likely be traded.  With Ty Lawson already being traded, the Rubio signing must payoff.  Now, if I'm Minnesota, I keep the 2011 first round pick and select Derrick Williams.  Next, I trade Michael Beasley who's contract expires after next season.  Also, Darko Milicic isn't the answer at center so they must attempt to acquire a legitimate starting center from the Beasley trade.  For instance, some players who could become available via a trade include Chris Kaman and Andris Biedrins.  I would even consider Robin Lopez if he too is an option.

but why trade beasley? he had a strong year, showed allot of improvement and things to come

As said, Beasley's contract expires after next season.  Hypothetically, If you've drafted Derrick Williams, why would you need Beasley? In my opinion, having them both is redundant.  And Beasley has done it for one season.  He could regress next season.  Hence, you trade him now while his trade value is reasonable high and his salary is manageable.  Even if he improves statistically from this season, Minnesota might not value him as a young star as much as they would for Williams and Rubio.  In other words, they may not want to pay his asking price come next year.

[Overrated]

"Ricky Rubio, huh?" Timberwolves All-Star Kevin Love tweeted late Wednesday night. "I'll believe it when I see it..."

I'm with Kevin Love - I'll believe it when I see it... and I really want to see it.

[Fafnir]

I'm uncertain of whether or not Ricky Rubio will ever prove the naysayers wrong that he belongs in the NBA. Nonetheless, this has to be good news if you're a Minnesota fan.

Jonny Flynn will more than likely be traded.  With Ty Lawson already being traded, the Rubio signing must payoff.  Now, if I'm Minnesota, I keep the 2011 first round pick and select Derrick Williams.  Next, I trade Michael Beasley who's contract expires after next season.  Also, Darko Milicic isn't the answer at center so they must attempt to acquire a legitimate starting center from the Beasley trade.  For instance, some players who could become available via a trade include Chris Kaman and Andris Biedrins.  I would even consider Robin Lopez if he too is an option.

but why trade beasley? he had a strong year, showed allot of improvement and things to come

I disagree, he showed that he was willing to shoot a lot and can't be a full time SF but that's about all.

[Lucky17]

Is there a way Minnesota could keep the #2 and still acquire a legit 2-guard from someone?

Having a hard time figuring out such a scenario.

[incoherent]

He sucks. Plain and simple.

He averaged like 7 points, and 4 assists last season in the Euro leagues. He's on the decline, just getting worse. No wonder Kahn wants him to play.

Brandon Jennings had similar numbers.  Rubio is still very young, and most NBA scouts think the potential is there for him to be a very good player.

I think the lockout will probably prevent him from coming to the NBA this season, though.

You would think that people would know by now not to blindly extrapolate numbers from Europe.

Okay, so serious question. I don't know anything about the Euro Leagues, don't follow them at all. How do you judge if Rubio or any other European player has legit NBA potential or not? What kind of indicators are you supposed to look for?

Rubio raised his stock when he played well in the gold medal game in 08.

Other then that I don't know.

[PosImpos]

He sucks. Plain and simple.

He averaged like 7 points, and 4 assists last season in the Euro leagues. He's on the decline, just getting worse. No wonder Kahn wants him to play.

Brandon Jennings had similar numbers.  Rubio is still very young, and most NBA scouts think the potential is there for him to be a very good player.

I think the lockout will probably prevent him from coming to the NBA this season, though.

You would think that people would know by now not to blindly extrapolate numbers from Europe.

I admit I did that with Tiago Splitter in my fantasy draft. There went a 12th rounder

Yeah.  With Euro numbers you just don't know -- you could get a Brandon Jennings, or you could get a Tiago Splitter, or even a Sergio Rodriguez / Rudy Fernandez (supposedly "legendary" player who is just a borderline role player at best).

To be fair to Tiago, though, he didn't get a ton of playing time and he was dealing with a tough coach.  I think he'll be a very solid player after some time.

[GreenEnvy]

Is there a way Minnesota could keep the #2 and still acquire a legit 2-guard from someone?

Having a hard time figuring out such a scenario.

A decent 2 is probably the easiest position to fill, so I guess if they parted with the rights to Rubio they could land a good SG.

But considering how reluctant they have been to trade him since they drafted him, I doubt they will now.

Beasley (proven talent) or Randolph (supposed talent) may bring a good SG with a future 1st (that's all but guaranteed to be a very good pick). But Beasley played too well for them to move him (unless it's for an All-Star like Joe Johnson or something) and Randolph's stock keeps dropping as his career progresses.

Can't Wes Johnson play the 2? I thought they like him as their future SG?

[CaliCeltics]

Rubio is like a Rondo. He can't shoot, and his passes are an attempt to be fancy from time to time. Going to a team like Minny, he's going to suffer. I honestly do not think he will put up good numbers.

The comparison to Brandon Jennings though, is that Jennings has a jumpshot.