Ricky Rubio Is Entering The Draft

[Bufalay]

The guy is averaging just under 10 points a game in europe, i don't know that he has the ability to score enough to be any good. I mean his vision and ball handling are one thing, but you have to have more. He can't shoot well, and he doesn't score enough. I'm not sold by any means.

Just like weren't convinced that Rudy would be any good in the NBA.

 

[Covert Rain]

Just like weren't convinced that Rudy would be any good in the NBA.

Correct me if I am wrong but I remember the Suns having no issues with his talent and the scouting reports on him were positive. I remember people on this board wanting him. Rudy was traded to save money not because his talent was in question.

 

[slinslin]

The name Darko comes to mind

Ummm no, in no way comparable.

I think some people are because if you look at what he is averaging right now against non NBA talent....I think youtube gives him a boost.

No we aren't, he played limited minutes this season and is still averaging 8 apg and over 2 steals per game in 22 minutes as an 18 year old in the 2nd best basketball league and under FIBA Rules.

That is enormous.

The guy is averaging just under 10 points a game in europe, i don't know that he has the ability to score enough to be any good. I mean his vision and ball handling are one thing, but you have to have more. He can't shoot well, and he doesn't score enough. I'm not sold by any means.

Umm first of all he is a PG, second of all he is 18 years old, 3rd of all this isn't the NBA it is FIBA basketball.
He shoots well enough, show me 18 years old out of highschool who have a perfect jumpshot.
His jumper has already improved, it will only get better in the NBA.

 

[Covert Rain]

No we aren't, he played limited minutes this season and is still averaging 8 apg and over 2 steals per game in 22 minutes as an 18 year old in the 2nd best basketball league and under FIBA Rules.

That is enormous.

Forgive me if I wait for actual real NBA workouts and scouting reports to come out before I am impressed with a player who plays in a league were 98% of the players will never see the NBA.

 

[YouJustGotSUNSD]

slinslin = Andrew of Ricky Rubio

Just sayin'...

 

[YouJustGotSUNSD]

Ummm no, in no way comparable.



No we aren't, he played limited minutes this season and is still averaging 8 apg and over 2 steals per game in 22 minutes as an 18 year old in the 2nd best basketball league and under FIBA Rules.

That is enormous.



Umm first of all he is a PG, second of all he is 18 years old, 3rd of all this isn't the NBA it is FIBA basketball.
He shoots well enough, show me 18 years old out of highschool who have a perfect jumpshot.
His jumper has already improved, it will only get better in the NBA.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

the Andrew of Ricky Rubio

 

[stuntburn]

from a guy who has attended the games during my trip and saw him play live

u doubters will eat ur words

hahahahahahahahah

so funny

 

[Goran Stoudemire]

Ricky Rubio should be the 1st pick in the draft but he probably wont because of Blake Griffins USA hype. If Griffin was 7'0 and a center I would probably pick him first but hes not and projects to be nothing more than a all-star in his prime.

Rubio is a once in a generation player. He is a player that you can compare to no one because of his great skills, good athleticism and ridiculous basketball iq at such a young age.

Spain dominated pool play, losing only to Team USA. Rubio was the spark plug off the bench until Jose Calderon tore a groin muscle, vacating the starting spot in the gold medal rematch. Rubio proved he belonged in the first quarter, when he dribbled behind his back to get a step on Jason Kidd at the top of the key, froze Carmelo Anthony with a pass fake and zipped to an easy layup. His quick-handed defense annoyed the American guards (his, ahem, childhood idols) despite playing almost 29 minutes with a badly injured wrist. More than his 6 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals, Rubio's grit kept Spain in the game and earned the consummate outsider some insider endorsements.

"He's fast, he's young and he goes a hundred miles an hour," says Redeem Team guard Dwyane Wade. "Plus, his ability to play at the Olympic level shows a lot of character. Right now he's playing off of sheer will. Once he gets to know the game a little better, he's going to be phenomenal."

That night, though, Rubio is in nearby Badalona, the home of DKV Joventut, Spain's small-market hoops factory. On the floor, the third-year pro disrupts passing lanes and creates plays that don't make the stat sheet. Several times he even outpositions 7'1", 280-pound Marc Gasol for rebounds. When Pau's younger brother lays him out with a vicious elbow, Rubio gets up (eventually) and even with a hard drive and an easy dish to a man Gasol has left open. No wonder Rubio is an open secret among NBA scouts.

Or the Western Conference GM who calls Rubio "a tremendous talent," then stops to make sure the rest of his comments are off the record before gushing for five more minutes. An Eastern exec cites the NBA fine before dropping this bomb. "He's the European LeBron James," he says. "He's not so crazy strong, but he does other things: the creativity, the Maravich-type stuff. He brings people out of their chairs, and he'll put them in your stands. He's a top-three pick."

Ricky Rubio started for Calderón and was solid, if not great. But the feat itself? Do I need to remind you he's the same age as Jamie Lynn Spears? Imagine Team USA picking Chris Paul and a high school kid as its point guards, then Paul missing the gold-medal game and the teenager holding his own? How many commercials would he be filming right now? Twenty? The nonstop Pistol Pete comparisons are beneath Rubio; his defensive instincts, playmaking and athleticism bring him closer to a hybrid of Scottie Pippen and a young Magic—if they happened to look like one of the Jonas Brothers. I love Ricky to the point that I might move to whatever NBA city gets him. You think I'm kidding.

Rubio was the youngest player to ever play in the Spanish ACB League, considered by many to be the premier professional league in the world outside of the NBA. The 6′4″ guard debuted for DKV Joventut when he was just 15 years old, and true to form as the prodigy he seemed, he lead Joventut to the FIBA EuroCup championship that very season.

For comparison sake, imagine if Chris Paul had joined the Hornets as a high-school sophomore and played a key role in their run to a title. The absurdity of such a scenario speaks to how special Rubio’s talent is.

He led the Spanish League in steals the next season en route to winning it’s Rising Star Award and being named FIBA Europe’s Young Player of the Year in 2007 and 2008.

Rubio has shown great maturity and strong floor leadership in continuing his torrent winning pace through Europe’s best club competition: he won the ULEB Cup championship with Joventut in 2008 while being voted the Best Point Guard in the Spanish League.

His scoring ability reminds many of Drazen Petrovic, with whom Rubio’s game is often linked, yet it is his unorthodox style and creative spark that have many comparing the young Spaniard to former LSU legend Pete Maravich.

Comparisons to a Hall of Famer such as Maravich do not come without expectation and Rubio has done his best to live up to any heightened scrutiny such associations create. In the fall of 2006, he led Spain’s Junior National team to the FIBA Europe Under-16 Championship by securing three triple-doubles and one quadruple-double for good measure.

Just how astounding was his dominance against his peer group? In the tournament final he finished with 51 points, 24 rebounds, 12 assists, and seven steals (he lead the tournament in all four categories). That performance has taken on a mythical status among hoop heads the world over after Doug Collins continually fawned over it during the Olympics.

Such starling success on the international stage propelled him to a place on the Spanish National team last fall and the aforementioned spot in the Olympics, where he became the youngest player ever to play in an Olympic Final.

Rubio’s game is not without its faults. He will need to improve his shooting efficiency and must develop more accuracy from long-range to become a feared scoring threat in the NBA.

Other weaknesses in his game include an inflated assist to turnover ratio. While he is unlikely to ever be among the league leaders in this efficiency standing given how improvisational and inventive his style of play is, it will nonetheless improve as he gains experience, control, and wisdom. Also worth noting is that his athleticism is adequate, but not extraordinary, especially in terms of his foot speed.

 

[joshstmarie]

ok i like rubio, but griffen is NOT "usa hype". that guy dominates. and WHEN he gets drafted #1 overall it will be for good reason.

 

[dodie53]

i hope,
somehow,
some way,
the suns get Rubio.

 

[Goran Stoudemire]

ok i like rubio, but griffen is NOT "usa hype". that guy dominates. and WHEN he gets drafted #1 overall it will be for good reason.

The guy is good but the hype he gets in the states will be the only reason he gets picked ahead of Rubio. The familiarity factor with most fans. Hype isnt bad either, it doesnt mean you dont dominate.

 

[Gambo is a Turd]

He shoots well enough, show me 18 years old out of highschool who have a perfect jumpshot.
His jumper has already improved, it will only get better in the NBA.

He gets no lift on his jumper. That's not something you generally teach at this stage of the game; you either got the hops or you don't and it sure looks like he doesn't.

 

[dreamcastrocks]

I think some people are because if you look at what he is averaging right now against non NBA talent....I think youtube gives him a boost.

Explain LeBron James. Was a man against boys. He proved it in the NBA obviously. Rubio has proven himself in Europe and in the Olympics. He's ready for the NBA. Much closer than Dragic ever was.

 

[Bufalay]

Correct me if I am wrong but I remember the Suns having no issues with his talent and the scouting reports on him were positive. I remember people on this board wanting him. Rudy was traded to save money not because his talent was in question.

I was talking to Arwillan, he was hating on Rudy during the olympics.

 

[slinslin]

Forgive me if I wait for actual real NBA workouts and scouting reports to come out before I am impressed with a player who plays in a league were 98% of the players will never see the NBA.

These workouts are just a formality for Rubio. Teams have scouted him for years, they know what he can do.

The only thing that can hurt his draft stock is his contract situation and wether he can come over this year or next.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

those of you doubting rubio's game will be shamed.

 

[joshstmarie]

The guy is good but the hype he gets in the states will be the only reason he gets picked ahead of Rubio. The familiarity factor with most fans. Hype isnt bad either, it doesnt mean you dont dominate.

no, that is not going to be "the only reason hes gets picked ahead of Rubio". have you even watched him play? I mean i salivate over rubio, but i touch myself over griffen clips. either way you cant go wrong, i just believe blake is going to be an amare stoudemire type of guy that can rebound...

 

[mojorizen7]

slinslin = Andrew of Ricky Rubio

Just sayin'...

Sorry Slin you're alright but...
ROTFL

 

[SunsTzu]

those of you doubting rubio's game will be shamed.

One way or another this is the type of thread that will deserve to be bumped in 3-4 years.

The one thing I really can't understand are the people knocking his level of competition. If there is one thing he has a massive advantage over everyone else in the draft it's the competition he's faced.

 

[Goran Stoudemire]

no, that is not going to be "the only reason hes gets picked ahead of Rubio". have you even watched him play? I mean i salivate over rubio, but i touch myself over griffen clips. either way you cant go wrong, i just believe blake is going to be an amare stoudemire type of guy that can rebound...

Blake Griffin will be lucky to be Amare Stoudemire at 75%. He is Kenyon Martin without the defense and injuries.