Official Rubio Rumormill

smokes

Huge Member
Ok, over the next week or so it's just going to be rumor central on this guy. We all know he doesn't really want to play in Minny. His agent doesn't want it too.

Let's keep this thread for any developments on Ricky Rubio since it seems the only two likely destinations right now are Spain or New York.

I'll keep the thread updated with the latest info as it comes in.

The Rumors so far (most recent on top):

Thursday 2/7

According to a report from El Periodico, Ricky Rubio has decided not to come over to the United States to play for the Minnesota Timberwolves and will remain with DKV Joventut for the next two seasons.

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/60284/20090702/rubio_will_stay_in_spain_for_two_seasons/)

Monday 29/6

* Rubio Says He's Leaning Towards Remaining In Spain

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_a..._says_hes_leaning_towards_remaining_in_spain/)

* Wolves Turned Down Knicks' Offer For 5th Pick

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_a...wolves_turned_down_knicks_offer_for_5th_pick/)

* Rockets Offer Brooks And Battier For Rubio

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_a...9/rockets_offer_brooks_and_battier_for_rubio/)

Sunday 28/6

* Knicks introduce draft picks, plan to seek info on Rubio

(source http://www.nba.com/2009/news/06/26/knicks.picks.ap/index.html)

* Euro Teams In The Hunt For Rubio

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/60144/20090628/euro_teams_in_the_hunt_for_rubio/)

* Rubio Arrived In Minnesota Saturday?

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/60143/20090628/rubio_arrived_in_minnesota_saturday/)

Friday 26/6

* Rubio Discussions Begin?

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/60119/20090626/rubio_discussions_begin/)

* Rubio Skips Press Conference

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/60118/20090626/rubio_skips_press_conference/)

* Open letter from Minnesota Timberwolves' David Kahn: Two point guards 'can and will work'

(source http://www.twincities.com/sports/ci_12697087?source=rss)

* Love: Rubio To Stay In Spain

(source http://www.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/60108/20090626/love_rubio_to_stay_in_spain/)

* Rubio talk continues to linger

(source http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/ba...l/knicks/blog/)

* Kahn: Wolves Can Wait For Rubio

(source http://www.realgm.net/src_wiretap_ar...ait_for_rubio/)

* Nothing In The Works To Deal Rubio To New York

(source http://www.realgm.net/src_wiretap_ar...o_to_new_york/)

Draft Night 25/6

* The Knicks are working hard to cut a deal with the Timberwolves to acquire guard Ricky Rubio, a Western Conference said.

One league GM said a deal “isn’t 100 percent,” but likely.

The T’wolves took Rubio fifth followed by Syracuse guard Jonny Flynn.


(source http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_y...F?slug=aw-draftbuzz062409&prov=yhoo&type=lgns)

* Timberwolves officials are thus far resisting the advances of the Knicks and the wishes of the player’s agent and insisting that Rubio will stay in Minnesota.

(source as above)

* Rubio’s Father: We could stay in Europe

(source http://www.theknicksblog.com/2009/06/26/rubios-father-we-could-stay-in-europe/)
 
Last edited:

smokes

Huge Member
Oh and btw, to all the people saying we can't trade Lee or Nate or w/e to the Wolves for Rubio, do you guys even remember the trades the Wolves made with some of their draft picks?

Ray Allen for Stephon Marbury...

OJ Mayo for Kevin Love...

Brandon Roy for Randy Foye...

We could probably offer them Jared Jefferies and a dildo in the ass and they would take it!
 

TheBigCock

Benchwarmer
Oh and btw, to all the people saying we can't trade Lee or Nate or w/e to the Wolves for Rubio, do you guys even remember the trades the Wolves made with some of their draft picks?

Ray Allen for Stephon Marbury...

OJ Mayo for Kevin Love...

Brandon Roy for Randy Foye...

We could probably offer them Jared Jefferies and a dildo in the ass and they would take it!
Reason why there is still hope!
Why would they do that?
 

TR1LL10N

Hannibal Lecter
Oh and btw, to all the people saying we can't trade Lee or Nate or w/e to the Wolves for Rubio, do you guys even remember the trades the Wolves made with some of their draft picks?

Ray Allen for Stephon Marbury...

OJ Mayo for Kevin Love...

Brandon Roy for Randy Foye...

We could probably offer them Jared Jefferies and a dildo in the ass and they would take it!

New management...
 

Blas

Benchwarmer
New management...

That drafted four point guards =P...

Just kidding, their plan isn't half bad. You have four picks in a weak draft, draft players other reams want and get there future picks hopefully in a deeper draft.
 

TR1LL10N

Hannibal Lecter
That drafted four point guards =P...

Just kidding, their plan isn't half bad. You have four picks in a weak draft, draft players other reams want and get there future picks hopefully in a deeper draft.

I think Kahn is an idiot. If you wanna take Rubio and gamble he is going to stay in Minni fine...after sending your sharpshooters away in a trade for the pick how do you not draft Curry to have a solid backcourt with AJ being a beast in the post?

He has to be planning a trade...it's crazy to think they actually want Rubio and Flynn playing together.
 

smokes

Huge Member
New management...

Obviously the last part is a joke, but still it's not unlikely that we can deal for Rubio.

They lack punch at the 2 and 3 spots. We have Nate, Chandler, Hughes (expiring). There is a deal to be done.
 

LJ4ptplay

Starter
As of now, it looks like Rubio is not coming to the Knicks.

Nothing In The Works To Deal Rubio To New York

Earlier indications were that the Knicks and Wolves were discussing a trade to send Ricky Rubio to the Knicks.

But Alan Hahn reports that "a source with knowledge of the Knicks' thinking said there was nothing in the works" with the Wolves regarding Rubio.

http://www.realgm.net/src_wiretap_a...thing_in_the_works_to_deal_rubio_to_new_york/


Kahn: Wolves Can Wait For Rubio

Timberwolves president David Kahn admitted on Thursday night that the team isn't in full control of Ricky Rubio's buy out situation.

"Nobody here tonight, myself especially, will be banging his fist on the table, saying, 'He must be here!' It's a very complicated matter," Kahn said Thursday night. "We need to understand that we're not in control of the situation vis a vis the buyout. ... I think it's too early to worry about that. But I said this to the agent tonight: If any team in this league can afford to wait a year, dare I say two, it's us. Y'know? It's us."

There were rumors on Draft Night that Rubio might not buy his way out of his contract with DKV Joventut and join Minnesota for this coming season.

Kahn downplayed the belief that Rubio's new revelation had something to do with him not wanting to playing for the Timberwolves.

"I don't think it's a destination problem," Kahn said. "I believe he would have been more than happy to play in Oklahoma City. And with all due respect to Oklahoma City ..."

http://www.realgm.net/src_wiretap_archives/60103/20090626/kahn_wolves_can_wait_for_rubio/
 

smokes

Huge Member
As of now, it looks like Rubio is not coming to the Knicks.

Updated the thread to reflect these articles, however...

I think Kahn is in denial about it not being a location issue. Rubio could have pulled this stunt no matter where he landed. His agent is very wily about these kind of situations as seen before with Yi.

Seriously, when you saw Rubio's face when he was drafted, giving the post-pick interview etc, and from what he said, you could tell he wasn't happy. That could be down to dropping to 5 and losing a couple mil on the contract but I doubt that would change the situation drastically.

I have no idea what Minny is thinking to let Rubio go back to Spain for 1-2 years while they have Flynn running the point. Then what happens, they trade off Flynn and bring in Rubio or what? This situation is just a farce.
 

richtree

Rotation player
I say if we do trade for Rubio -- say for chandler ..

we should make sure we get Ellington back in the deal as well.

Rubio, Ellington, Hill, Douglas is a nice rebuild for the Knicks
 

SSj4Wingzero

All Star
Of course Minnesota is going to try to claim that they still want him. If they come out and admit that he's not playing for them anytime soon they're going to lose any leverage they may have in a trade. Whereas if they say they're actually going to wait for him that's going to put pressure on Donnie Walsh to maybe give him a few more pieces
 

dave2138

Rotation player
Oh well..this is probably for the better than the Twolves drafted Rubio and plan to keep him. In 4 years when he is 22, 23 the Knicks will probably sign him. Until then just fill in with the best available cheap, veteran FA PG..

Lets move on from Rubio..

Even with some of the stupid trades the Twolves have made in the recent past, its still pretty impressive the way they have been able to add on draft picks the past 2 years.

Very good chance they will have 3 picks in the top 20 next year, in a supposedly very deep draft.
 

SSj4Wingzero

All Star
Yeah whereas we basically get the last remaining inch of Isiah's shaft next year since our pick is unprotected and the Jazz have it
 

LJ4ptplay

Starter
Face reality folks. Rubio aint coming to the Knicks. He's staying in Europe. That's why Minny drafted Flynn. In case Rubio decided to stay.

Plus, it doesn't sound like Walsh was very high on Rubio's list. He had Hill possibly higher. SMH.

Rubio talk continues to linger

OK, where there's smoke, there's usually fire. But this Ricky Rubio thing is more of a smolder. And on Friday Donnie Walsh blew on the embers to keep them glowing a little, though his rare transparency was curious.

On the day the Knicks introduced first round picks Jordan Hill and Toney Douglas to the media at the MSG Training Center, Walsh acknowledged that he planned to call his former protege, Timberwolves president David Kahn, to check in on the situation involving his decision to select two point guards -- Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn -- with back-to-back picks at No. 5 and 6.

“I haven’t spoken to Minnesota, I will," Walsh said. "I don’t know what’s going on there. He took a lot of point guards so I want to ask him, ‘Why did you do that?’ In a way that kind of helped us because that left us with two players that were, in our mind, really good players. I just want to find out.”

Walsh said Rubio was "very high" on the Knicks draft board but when asked if he would have selected the Spanish guard if he were there at No. 8, Walsh replied, “We would have considered a lot of people at eight, but tht would have meant that the guy that we got would have been gone.”

Multiple sources have said that Rubio was not as highly-regarded by the Knicks as Stephen Curry and Tyreke Evans and perhaps not as much as Hill, whom some Knick scouts touted as the second-best player in the draft. But if there is a chance Rubio -- whose father told a Spanish media outlet that his son will most likely remain in Spain for two years (until his current contract with DKV Joventut expires) -- could be acquired for a relatively cheap cost, it's worth a look.

But before we explore the options, you should know that Kahn was on with Mike & Mike on ESPN Radio this morning and vehemently denied any intentions to trade Rubio. Kahn said he was quite aware that Rubio might decide not to report and that's why he took Flynn with the very next pick. The T-Wolves can play Flynn now and take their time dealing with the Rubio situation.

Rubio we're told was desperately hopeful he would somehow wind up with the Knicks and, apparently, is still holding out hope. It is pretty clear that he would immediately report if the Knicks acquired his rights.

But, though Walsh says he will check it out, it is still very unlikely to happen.

More on Hill and Douglas later on. Time to beat the Friday traffic home.

http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/basketball/knicks/blog/
 

smokes

Huge Member
Updated.

I don't think you can gain anything from that really that isn't already known. As many people have said, of course Kahn is gonna say he is not trading Rubio, to get the best possible offers on the table as possible.

It seems like a total waste to let the kid go back to Spain for 2 years, just so he can come back to NBA and get traded then. Then again you can't really put it past a GM of a struggling team to not deny resources for other teams to improve.
 

smokes

Huge Member
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.

Not sure if this is anything different to the previous mention of his fathers comments, plus Twitter is pretty loose. Just postin.
 

Knicker23

Benchwarmer
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/draft2009/news/story?id=4290401

Knicks' interest heightens Rubio hype


GREENBURGH, N.Y. -- The New York Knicks are curious whether Ricky Rubio will wind up in Minnesota or Spain next season, curious enough that team president Donnie Walsh was planning to contact Minnesota by the end of the day Friday to begin seeking answers.

Like everyone else around the NBA, the Knicks were taken by surprise Thursday night when the Timberwolves used the fifth and sixth picks of the NBA draft to select a pair of point guards, Rubio and Syracuse's Jonny Flynn.

The suspense deepened after Rubio's father told a Spanish media outlet that Rubio would prefer to return to Spain for at least one season, maybe two, and the Timberwolves found themselves Friday in the uncomfortable position of planning their introductory post-draft news conference without the player they sacrificed Mike Miller and Randy Foye to select.


NBA Rumor Central

ESPN Insider has the updated buzz from the National Basketball Association rumor mill.
Story

"There is such a thing as drafting assets. I don't know if that is what he's doing," Walsh said of new Timberwolves general manager David Kahn, who worked under Walsh for several years with the Indiana Pacers as Walsh's assistant GM.

Looking back on the events of the past few days, Walsh said Kahn had indicated to him -- an indication that Walsh initially dismissed -- that he might take two guards with the two picks. So Walsh said it was the biggest surprise of the night, in his opinion, when Minnesota took Flynn with the sixth pick -- giving the Knicks the assurance that they would get one of the two players remaining on the board that they coveted -- Jordan Hill or Stephen Curry.

"It was just a general conversation," Walsh said. "We didn't talk about players, but he said, 'I would take two little guys.' And I thought it was just a comment meaning, 'I'm not going to do this in a prototypical type of way, because I need players.' "

Hill was the player the Knicks took with the No. 8 pick, and New York also selected Florida State guard Toney Douglas with the No. 29 pick they purchased for $3 million from the Los Angeles Lakers.

The best Hill moment from Friday was when he mentioned how he remembered when the Knicks had Patrick Ewing and Charles Oakley and were good. Asked how old he was when he formed those memories, Hill answered "5 or 6."

The best Douglas moment was when he showed off his No. 23 jersey and it was pointed out to him that there might be a free agent out there 12 months from now who would probably want that number for himself.

Walsh insisted that his draft selections would have no bearing on the uncertain futures of restricted free agents David Lee and Nate Robinson, though it was hard to ignore the fact that Hill and Douglas could fill the roles Lee and Robinson occupied the past three seasons (and, in a perfect world, newly acquired Darko Milicic could spend a season grabbing some of the rebounds Lee specialized in corralling).

The Knicks value Lee more than they do Robinson, but if Lee and/or Robinson are going to take up a large portion of the cap space the Knicks want to have available next summer to make a run at LeBron James/Dwyane Wade/Chris Bosh, both could be expendable.

"I'm always looking at 2010, because I do want to be in the free-agent market in a big way, so I would say it's going to be my job to make sure that happens -- that we don't disrupt that in a major way," Walsh said.

Toward that end, Walsh will continue during the summer to try to find takers for Eddy Curry and Jared Jeffries, two of the four players (Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari are the others, to be joined shortly by Hill and Douglas) under contract through the 2010-11 season.

In hindsight, the Knicks had some huge regrets Friday. Two weeks ago, they were convinced Rubio would be off the board at No. 5, leading them to turn down a deal that would have sent Larry Hughes and Chandler to Washington for Etan Thomas, Mike James, Oleksiy Pecherov and the No. 5 pick (New York would not have surrendered the eighth pick in that trade), and Washington ended up getting Miller and Foye for the pick.

Now, depending on how things shake out between Rubio and the Timberwolves, the NBA rights to the 18-year-old could come onto the market this summer, next season or even in the summer of 2010 or 2011 if he opts to return to DKV Joventut rather than relocate to Minneapolis -- Rubio's astronomical $6 million buyout drops to zero in the summer of 2011).

One of the biggest certainties of the day Friday was that Kahn would be receiving a number of exploratory phone calls inquiring about his plans should Rubio balk at reporting.

And if that is the case, the rights to Rubio could be an asset that increases in value in the weeks and months ahead.

"I haven't spoken to Minnesota, I will," Walsh said. "I don't know what's going on there. He took a lot of point guards, and I want to ask him, 'Why did you do that?' "

Kahn traded two of the four point guards he drafted, sending Ty Lawson to Denver for a future first-round pick and dealing Nick Calathes to Dallas. Kahn also insisted in an ESPN interview Thursday night that he was committed to keeping both Rubio and Flynn and playing them together, but a huge factor in that equation is how easy or difficult it is going to be for the Wolves to play ball with Rubio and his agent, Dan Fegan, who has a history of trying to steer his international clients away from small-market teams.

A rival agent of Fegan's predicted that Minnesota owner Glen Taylor would take a stubborn stance if Rubio tried to force the Wolves' hand.

"He's very thoughtful," Walsh said of Kahn, "and I think you'd be wrong to judge him based on this because he probably has Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, Step 4 [already planned]. And he's going into a situation that needs some change, and he's looking at trying to change it, and he'll do it in various ways -- and the draft is the first step in this process."
 
Top