After trading power forward Kevin Love, the Minnesota Timberwolves don’t want to lose another fan favorite in point guard Ricky Rubio. Although discussions between the two are ongoing, there doesn’t seem to be that much progress.
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Lang Greene of Basketball Insiders wonders if the Timberwolves will wait until next offseason and let Rubio test the market as a restricted free agent.
"The club waited full two seasons for him to arrive from overseas, then the guard suffered a season ending injury as a rookie. Off the court, then general manager David Kahn also refused to give Love a five-year deal, opting to reserve that for Rubio which no doubt had a strong impact on the forward’s disgruntled mental state prior to his departures.Minnesota is in a state of transition and Rubio has proven to be an effective, not spectacular, floor general. The question is how much should the Timberwolves invest in Rubio’s future potential, proactively. Or should the team wait for next summer where another franchise could choose to overpay and put pressure on Minnesota to match a max level deal."
Of course, the Timberwolves would be taking a risk – a team could offer Rubio a max contract. However, if that’s what he is demanding any way, it may not be a bad play.
Rubio averaged 9.5 points, 8.6 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game while shooting 38.1% from the floor, 33.1% from beyond the arc and 80.2% from the free throw line last season. In his career, he’s put up 10.1 points, 8.1 assists, 4.1 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game while shooting 36.8% from the floor, 32.3% from three and 80.1% from the charity stripe.
Be sure to check FanSided’s official NBA page to keep up to date on the latest news and rumors from around the league as we get you ready for the start of the 2014-2015 season.
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