Ricky Rubio says contract talks are disctracting him
By Josh Hill
The Minnesota Timberwolves earmarked a max contract a few years ago for Ricky Rubio, thus boxing out Kevin Love like he has to so many defenders over the years. But now that Love is in Cleveland, the Wolves are stuck with a situation where they don’t want to pay Rubio a max deal even if that’s exactly what he’s expecting.
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According to Jon Krawczynski of The Associated Press, Rubio is admitting that the ongoing contract dispute between himself and the Timberwolves is taking away from his ability to totally focus on the court.
"“I don’t want to talk to the media about my contract situation,” Rubio said. “I think it bothers me on the basketball court, so I don’t want to talk to the media about it. My agent’s dealing with Flip and Glen and that’s it.”"
This is likely a negotiation tactic but it’s a risky one to say the least. Rubio is trying to play his way into a max deal with someone this season, but saying that he’s distracted on the court could backfire.
It could also turn out brilliantly too, as Rubio could have a solid season and then turn around to say he did it all while distracted, so imagine what he’s like focused. Either way, Rubio wants a new deal and until something happens, this cat-and-mouse game is going to continue.
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