Minnesota Timberwolves’ Ricky Rubio could grow into an ‘elite level’ guard
The Minnesota Timberwolves and point guard Ricky Rubio have until October 31 to work a contract extension. Rubio is looking for a max deal while the Timberwolves obviously would like to spend a little less money and are reportedly going to offer him a four-year deal worth about $42 million.
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According to David Aldridge of NBA.com, a max deal still could make sense because Rubio still has time to develop into an elite level guard.
"If Minnesota bites the bullet and maxes out Rubio, would a core group of Rubio, Wiggins, Bennett, LaVine (the Wolves really are giddy about him) Gorgui Dieng and Nikola Pekovic make any kind of noise in the West? (I left out Young because he’s got a player option for next year at $9.7 million, and I suspect he’ll opt out. Don’t think he’s long for the 612, one way or the other.)In the end, the devil you know is almost always better than the devil you don’t know. And Rubio is still just 24. He did hold his own as a teenager in 2008 in Beijing against grown U.S. men for Spain in the gold medal game at the Olympics. There’s still time for him to grow into an elite level NBA guard. And there has to be somewhere between $12 million a year and $18 million a year for someone with that kind of potential, but that kind of work yet to do."
The Timberwolves have a tough choice because they don’t want lose another popular player. The best guess they let him his restricted free agency and set his market.
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.
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