Univision News

A less-hyped, fully-committed Ricky Rubio is making his NBA debut this season, two and a half years after being drafted number 5 overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves. (Facebook)

By DAVID GUTT
Channel: Sports 

On the evening of June 25, 2009, all anyone could talk about was Ricard Rubio Vives. Ricky Rubio to the fans. “Ricky,” I’m sure, to all the ladies. “La Pistola” to the writers at ESPN who likened his breakneck, no-look, explosive passing and playing style to that of Hall of Famer “Pistol” Pete Maravich. And “Nutella”[1] to those of us who are reminded of a young Jason “White Chocolate” Williams when we see Rubio dish out his magic behind-the-back and between-the-legs passes that keep heads on swivels and spare balls at hand.

June 25, of course, was draft night, and the buzz was piping hot. Blake Griffin had declared and, sure, he was certain to go number 1 to an endlessly maligned Clippers franchise, but that news had come and gone. The real reason the country tuned in that night was to witness the fate of that young Spaniard everybody was talking about; the one with the aquiline nose, lightning hands, and a shocking abundance of hair.

But perhaps even faster than it has risen, Rubio’s bright star plummeted. 

Despite all the hype, the screaming fans, and the face-to-face with Commissioner David Stern, everything seemed to come to a standstill when Rubio fell to the remote, small market Minnesota Timberwolves before the house favorite New York Knicks could snatch him up.

Then, to make matters worse, Rubio backed off his previous inclinations to help a limited NBA team buy out his contract with local club Barcelona, and instead decided to stay in Spain for another two seasons, fading from the minds of NBA fans the country over.

It has been two and a half years since that night, and now, as Rubio returns to America to make his NBA debut, the still-quite-young player who was once considered the league’s next prodigious phenom drifts under the radar like a ship in the night, looking for his chance to make the big splash that once seemed inevitable.

The day after Christmas, the Minnesota Timberwolves will face off against rising Western Conference titan Oklahoma City in what will hopefully be Ricky’s first regular season NBA game.[1] And what better way to ignite some chatter around this explosive Spanish import than to revisit the exciting path that brought him to the attention of a nation of basketball fans, and then left him nearly all but forgotten?

                                                            *  *  *

After dominating the youth circuit in Spain, the mop-headed prodigy from El Masnou made his professional debut with Spanish League DKV Joventut at 14 years old and gained instant Iberian fame. His long flowing locks and boyish mug gained Rubio a sort of teeny, pin-up status amongst teenage girls, while NBA scouts swooned over his potential. 

His length and court vision drew early comparisons to another oversized high school point guard from across the pond: LeBron James. You know, BFD. Then, in step with a growing legend, Rubio blew up in the U-16 European Championship for 51 points, 24 rebounds, 12 assists, and 7 steals.[2] 

But despite all this local fame, Rubio’s quiet demeanor kept him from the American spotlight, until his explosive coming out party as part of the Spanish national team.

At the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, the 17-year-old point was a key player on a team dripping with NBA veterans and all-stars.[3] Lifted onto his precocious shoulders, the Spaniards finished with a silver medal, falling to the Americans 118-107. Thrust into a leadership role, a hurting Rubio finished the gold medal game with 6 points, 3 assists, and 6 boards, while going 4-4 from the stripe.[4] 

 That more or less brings us back to draft night. Minnesota sat at picks 5 and 6 and there was a lot of speculation about whether or not they could trade up to grab Griffin, or if they could somehow acquire another pick in the top 5. But the real talk was about the Knicks. 

The Knicks wanted Rubio and half the country seemed to think that they would strike a deal with Memphis and trade up to no. 2 to take him. Memphis had Mike Conley on board, so everybody knew that drafting a point guard was not in their plans. Neither was Rubio a target for Oklahoma City at no. 3, a team with Russell Westbrook already showing serious promise. 

But the Knicks couldn’t manage to move up at all and ended up choking big time, passing up on spectacular guard Brandon Jennings for a lanky featherbedder named Jordan Hill. Who, you ask?  Exactly, I say.

Rubio, who such a short time before was certain to come off the board no later than number 2, in an instant, slipped to number 5. 

Hearing his name announced, the young Spaniard walked up to the podium at Madison Square Garden, shook David Stern’s hand, and put on a Timberwolves hat. And if it wasn’t the thin roster, the cellar-dwelling history, the questionable leadership, or the small market that made Rubio question making the jump to the NBA, it was what happened next.

No sooner than Rubio had put that T-Wolves hat on his head, Minnesota selected Johnny Flynn, point guard out of Syracuse. That’s right folks, another point guard.

In case you don’t remember all that well, instead of taking a shooter or an athletic wingman to round out a roster that would feature a young, pass-first point guard and two talented forwards in Kevin Love and Al Jefferson, they selected another young, pass-first point guard. 

And they weren’t done yet. By the end of the night, the Minnesota front office had selected 4 (four!) point guards in total, and had some serious Rubio trouble on the way. 

Soon after the draft, young Ricky Rubio, rising star, flew back to Spain, as his story - and some scouts say, his game - dissipated by the banks of the Mediterranean.

But after a long wait, Ricky Rubio is finally back. And even though we’ve seen his numbers - and hype - decline over the past two years,[5] he still shows the strong measurables and skill set that projected him to be an excellent starting point guard in the NBA, not to mention, the perfect new addition for a Timberwolves team on the rise.

To begin, Ricky Rubio is a long armed, 6’4”, 180lb pass-first point guard with quick, strong hands and good anticipation. If you don’t know, that ranks him among the bigger point guards in the league.  His arm length and anticipation make him a great on-the-ball defender, descending on smaller point guards like an albatross. But it might make him even better in help, giving opposing slashers a tough time driving through the key.  Most importantly, he is a committed defender in a league saturated with defensive apathy. 

As a rebounder, Rubio shows the excellent ability to read angles and hustle for loose balls. Some players simply have a knack for knowing which way the ball will bounce, and Rubio flashes that rare ability. Like Jason Kidd before him, Rubio shows the potential to be a league leader in rebounds at the point guard position.

While his offensive game is what gained him the most international recognition with his accurate, split-second, through a glimmer of daylight, passes, it is also the weakest facet of his game. Though he does have the potential to be an uncanny set-up man, many scouts, including ESPN stat-hound writer (and fellow Atlantan) John Hollinger, describe Rubio as being a poor finisher at the rim and an atrocious shooter.[6] Will this hamper him in the NBA? In a word, yes. In a longer word, abso-freakin-lutely. He is not going to be able to create the same kind of space that he is used to in Spain and he will be dealing with faster, more physical defenders in this league, so if he is to have some success, figuring out how to fill up the bucket is his most crucial area of improvement.  

Strangely enough, however, he is an outstanding free throw shooter. So, while the strength and physicality of NBA defenders will hurt him in terms of creating space and position, it is likely to help him get to the stripe at a greater clip if he plays tough and stays aggressive.

This Minnesota squad is also a far cry from the miserable excuse for a team that awaited Ricky when he was drafted. Now young Rubio has the help of two phenomenal athletes coming off the wing in Wes Johnson and the Garnett-lite Derrick Williams. Not to mention rebounding/passing machine Kevin Love.[7] Just imagine that picture:  KLove grabbing the rebound and kicking it out quickly to Rubio on the break with Johnson and Williams storming up the in formation like Blue Angels or Mighty Ducks. It’s the stuff that dreams are made of. 

Throw in hoary, heady new coach Rick Adelman - who dealt with a similar roster with his title-threatening, early-aughts Kings teams - and you have a squad that will be better than advertised, very exciting to watch, and a perfect place for Rubio to shine.

Hype or no hype, buzz or no buzz, hair or … less hair, Ricky Rubio is finally here. And he is ready to impress.

Photo of Rubio with David Stern on draft night: (Facebook)
Photo of Rubio in preseason game versus Milwaukee Bucks: (Wikipedia)