Rubio to stay in Spain.

[Martti.]

A report on Marca on Thursday night quoted Ricky Rubio's father as saying he will likely remain in Spain instead of joining the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Kevin Love sent out a Twitter post on Friday indicating that Rubio indeed would remain in Spain.

"Rubio to stay in Spain according to his father," writes Love.

Well, the Wolves saw this coming when they drafted Flynn after Rubio. That's the reason in my eyes.

[Alejandrov011]

Let's hope he is not the next Fran Vazquez

[Donatello]

What a dick.

[vinceair]

What a dick.

Why? There's enough time for that spanish boy. Atleast he get's into NBA,but you are only cynical poster..

[Patr1ck]

What's the point of that?

[Oskar]

This way he doesn't have to buy out his contract which he would have had to do himself anyways. If he would've gone to the Knicks for example or if he'd been a top 3 pick and gotten a bigger contract, the buyout wouldn't have been such a big problem. After 2 more years he's going to be just 20 anyways. By the way, he's the first player ever from the 1990's to be drafted, if some of yer didn't know.

[JaoSming]

Oskar, yea im sure none of us who watched the draft heard it enough when Stuart Scott mentioned it ~20 times

as for rubio staying in spain, that gives me a case of

[Lamrock]

I would rather stay in Spain than pay 8 million dollars to be a backup point guard in Minnesota.

[Martti.]

The Wolves drafted Flynn in case Rubio stays in Spain, not seeing it could actually prompt him to stay.. Rubio is better off in Spain, as he is only 18. If he waited two years, he would still be 2 years younger then Thabeet for example in his rookie year.

[Donatello]

I just think you shouldn't enter the NBA draft if you aren't committed to playing in the NBA when you're drafted.

[shadowgrin]

Unless the team wants you to stay in Europe and develop because they have a shitload of good players at the moment, like Portland.


Rubio's a dick.

[chocofrap]

The Knicks are about to officially enter the Ricky Rubio sweepstakes. Donnie Walsh revealed on Friday that he intends to call his former assistant, Minnesota GM David Kahn, about the availability of Rubio, the fifth overall pick from Thursday's NBA Draft. Rubio, the highly touted point guard from Spain, would prefer to play in New York. Rubio's father told Marca.com that his son may elect to stay with his club team in Spain for at least another two years. New York Daily News

[Oskar]

Oskar, yea im sure none of us who watched the draft heard it enough when Stuart Scott mentioned it ~20 times

as for rubio staying in spain, that gives me a case of

Well Pdub asked about the point of staying in Spain, maybe I misunderstood tho.

[shadowgrin]

Jao was referring to this:

By the way, he's the first player ever from the 1990's to be drafted, if some of yer didn't know.

[Lamrock]

Uh-oh. The window on my NBA dream is closing!

[jonthefon]

What a dick. When you have options and still choose to enter the draft, you've got to be ready and willing to accept wherever you're told to go. You just can't fucking pull out from personal choice.

If you think you're going to get drafted high as a backup to start off, then just don't enter the fucking draft.

[benji]

Um, that's not exactly the situation. He is still under contract back in Spain. He can buy out his contract (apparently for $6 million) in order to play here, but that comes out of his pocket. Rubio's chosen to play out his contract, maximizing the money he makes, and then start his NBA stint down the road. The Timberwolves won't pay him, as his rookie contract won't start, until he actually comes over.

[jonthefon]

If he doesn't want to buy out the contract, then he should have played it out or to a point where he was completely willing to buy it out before declaring.

[benji]

Why? If he had gone higher he would've made enough to buyout, but at #5 he'd play for less than free his first two seasons in the NBA. (He'd actually lose half a million playing in the NBA.)

[The X]

I'd agree with Benji & Lamrock here. The drop from 2/3 to 5 is about $5 million over the course of rookie contract, which is about what he'd have to pay to get out of his contract. Why play for nothing (after taxes) as a backup PG to Jonny friggin' Flynn?!? I think if Minnesota traded up to #2 to get him & didn't also draft Flynn, then he'd be in Minnesota. The team picking him knew this was an option. He always had to be a top 3 pick, that was never in doubt.

To the people saying you shouldn't enter your name unless you're willing to play where you're drafted, who's to say he's not once his current contract is up in Spain? I don't see you getting upset with teams who have absolutely no intention of bringing in a player that they have drafted for at least 1/2/3 years (Blazers picking Euros, possibly Mills & other teams picking Euros or not having roster space). You can't say it's bad for player to do it, but not also chastise each & every team for doing the exact same thing.

The only loser is the Minnesota fans. This is a business, teams treated it like that. Don't be upset that players do too.

[jonthefon]

He wouldn't be #5 and having that cash drop-down if it hadn't been for the jerking around with "not wanting to play in Memphis".

And the way the thing goes, it has always been business for the teams come draft-time. They're going to trade their picks around for cash, for another player. It's not the greatest thing, but that's the status quo and the draft revolves around the decisions of each team, not the players to be drafted. If they don't want to be a part of that, they can hold back and wait, unless they're four-year college players.

I agree with everyone that this kid is very talented, but I haven't been too impressed by how his camp has pulled things.

[Andrew]

Why play for nothing (after taxes) as a backup PG to Jonny friggin' Flynn?!?

Fair enough, but why declare for the Draft when it wouldn't be financially feasible to even go to the NBA? I see what you're saying here...

To the people saying you shouldn't enter your name unless you're willing to play where you're drafted, who's to say he's not once his current contract is up in Spain? I don't see you getting upset with teams who have absolutely no intention of bringing in a player that they have drafted for at least 1/2/3 years (Blazers picking Euros, possibly Mills & other teams picking Euros or not having roster space). You can't say it's bad for player to do it, but not also chastise each & every team for doing the exact same thing.

...but as I see it, the circumstances are a little different. A maximum of 15 players can make the cut for an NBA team by the opening night of the new season and if you're drafted 60th overall, chances are you're not going to make the cut and may never make the cut (and who's to say that some 60th picks feel insulted and/or have no interest in coming to the NBA upon being drafted?). On the other side of things, if you enter the NBA Draft you are presumably interested in playing in the NBA and willing to do so.

Don't get me wrong, at this point I'm not jumping on the "Rubio is a dick" bandwagon because you're right, it is a business and it makes sense financially for Rubio to play out his contract rather than buy it out. But at the same time, I think it's a fair question to ask if this is the case, why declare for the Draft now? I think the situation with Fran Vasquez has probably left a bad taste in a lot of people's mouths as well. In the coaching ranks, it was a similar situation with Billy Donovan. If you're not interested in the NBA, why send out feelers and then sign a contract? I also have to wonder if it's merely a leverage tactic, and if he'd feel differently if he could be traded somewhere else, leading to a Steve Francis-like situation. I think in that situation people would certainly be entitled to calling him a dick or a tool or whatever.

It raises another interesting issue though. Perhaps NBA teams should be able to pay a bigger percentage of the costs when buying out a contract, if not the whole thing. That way, if an NBA team was so keen to bring in a player with a contract elsewhere that needs to be bought out, it would be up to them to take the financial hit (or at least a bigger chunk of it).

[Mayerhendrix]

I just think you shouldn't enter the NBA draft if you aren't committed to playing in the NBA when you're drafted.

IMO there should be a rule so that if a team that holds your draft rights wants you to play -- you're obligated to do it. Entering the draft marks a major commitment, and players should be held to that.

[Andrew]

Well, I wouldn't go that far. If you apply for a job and you are successful in getting it, until you accept that job and sign a contract you're free to back out. But it would help if NBA teams could contribute more towards a buying out a contract and while you couldn't legally and in good faith force a player to play for a team that drafts them (wouldn't that essentially be slavery?), I don't disagree with the sentiment. If you're not ready to go to the NBA for whatever reason or you don't like the idea of being picked by a team you don't want to play for, then maybe you shouldn't declare for the Draft.

[Mayerhendrix]

Well, I wouldn't go that far. If you apply for a job and you are successful in getting it, until you accept that job and sign a contract you're free to back out. But it would help if NBA teams could contribute more towards a buying out a contract and while you couldn't legally and in good faith force a player to play for a team that drafts them (wouldn't that essentially be slavery?), I don't disagree with the sentiment. If you're not ready to go to the NBA for whatever reason or you don't like the idea of being picked by a team you don't want to play for, then maybe you shouldn't declare for the Draft.

It's not exactly slavery when so many players are registering for the draft -- and the impact on teams like Orlando and Minnesota that have expected players such as Fran Vazquez and Ricky Rubio to play for them is significant. I would favor some type of contractual stipulation for players registering for the draft...or there has to be some way to make players more upfront about their intentions to wait a few years before coming to the NBA.