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Rubio Begins His NBA Journey

Ricky Rubio is still in his native Barcelona, but his heart and his signature are now in Minnesota. The 20-year-old Spaniard held a press conference on Friday to announce the new chapter in his career.

“It is my dream and I want to fulfill it,” he told reporters, as transcribed by ESPN.com in a piece that featured reporting from the Associated Press and Ric Bucher. “After thinking about it a lot, the time has arrived.”

“I felt very confident since we drafted him that he would start his career here,” Timberwolves president David Kahn said. “There was never a moment where that really wavered.”

For Rubio, the timing might be perfect for a move to the states. He averaged only 5.3 PPG for Barcelona this year, which is a far cry from his 10.5 and his 10.0 PPG averages he posted in his years with DKV Joventut. After hitting over 40% of his 3-point attempts in 2008-2009 and 2009-2010, Rubio’s accuracy plummeted to 27% this season and he hit only 22.4% from range during Euroleague play. Worst of all, Rubio has gone from averaging 6.1 APG and 2.6 turnovers per game in 2008-2009—when he was just 18—to averaging 4.4 APG and a career-high 3.4 turnovers per game this past season.

“Individually, I could have done things better, but it is a team sport and we had success,” said Rubio, who reportedly lost his starting spot with Barcelona this season. “I am going because I feel prepared. I want to play against the best players in the world.”

However, Kahn isn’t overly concerned with Rubio’s stats because he feels the mop-topped point guard’s game is more suited for the NBA than the ACB.

“A lot of attention is paid to his numbers without really an understanding of how different their game is and their style of play,” Kahn said. “Especially with the Barcelona team, which plays a very halfcourt-oriented game that frankly isn’t very suitable for his style.

“I don’t know what his defined role will be next year,” Kahn continued. “But there’s no question in my mind that he will play next year and he will play significant minutes.

Union, Owners Meet in Manhattan

The NBA Draft may be taking a sabbatical from Madison Square Garden, but that doesn’t mean midtown Manhattan is lacking offseason basketball drama. Players and owners gathered across the street from the NBA headquarters in New York City on Friday to continue negotiations on a new CBA, writes ESPN.com’s Chris Sheridan.

The big question remains, “Who will blink first?”

Owners are still reportedly insisting on a hard salary cap, a reduction in contract guarantees, a reduction in the maximum length of contracts, and a whopping $750 million to $800 million reduction in player salaries. With only two weeks remaining before the deadline, this represents the last chance to avoid a lockout.

“Obviously time is running out and if we don’t get something accomplished today, or the potential of getting something accomplished in the next week or so, then things will begin to fall into place pretty much as everyone has predicted,” union director Billy Hunter told Sheridan.

“The pressure is here,” Hunter continued. “If we’re trying to avoid a lockout and the impact it will have on the league, this would be the time to make a move.”

The biggest obstacle for the owners is convincing the players that the current system is unworkable—a tough task considering Nielsen Ratings are inching back toward their mid-90s peak. This year’s Finals were watched by an average of around 17.3 million per contest, and Game 6 garnered nearly 24 million viewers. The last time the league was this popular was 1998—right before the lockout of 1999 drastically reduced interest in the NBA.

The players and owners really can’t forget this cautionary tale. By the 2003 Finals most fans had seen enough. Game 2 of the Nets-Spurs series pulled in a pathetic 5.2 rating and more viewers watched reruns on CBS rather than the sixth and deciding game.

But things didn’t stay bleak for long and the players, owners and league officials deserve credit for reinvigorating the brand. Yao Ming’s presence in Houston as well as the rise of foreign players like Manu Ginobili, Dirk Nowitzki and Pau Gasol popularized the NBA overseas while Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the new-look Celtics rallied domestic fans. New sponsors—everything from Chinese shoe companies to Russian airlines—are becoming visible at games and international billionaires like Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov are offering top dollar for a franchise.

Now that the league is popular again, are the players and owners willing to throw it all away?

To the union’s credit, the players offered to back off from the current basketball related income (BRI) rate of 57%, but the owners don’t appear to be meeting them halfway. Sheridan writes that there is a perception that a small group of owners are “dictating the pace and tone of the negotiating process.”

Of course, it’s difficult to say who those owners are. Big market teams like the Lakers and Knicks hold a lot of power within the league, but those are the franchises that can afford to continue to play by the current rules. It’s the small market teams that are the ones that are struggling.

“The owners appear to be pretty unified in their position,” Hunter told Sheridan. “If I had to say who, I probably would say the small markets are driving. Because if you look at the big markets—Chicago, LA, New York—they’re making tons of money. So it’s not an issue with them, it’s an issue of the smaller markets. I think that David [Stern], if he feels the climate is right within the room and there is a deal to be made, then David still has enough sway to make the deal. But I’m not sure that’s an easy move on their part.”

The NBA has traditionally been good to smaller markets. Three upstate New York towns—Syracuse, Buffalo, Rochester—all had NBA franchises before the merger and even today cities like San Antonio and Oklahoma City are enjoying top-level basketball. Nobody wants to see those kinds of markets removed from the NBA, but if the survival of Sacramento Kings comes at the cost of an entire season, Stern may need to reprioritize.

{AUTHOR_BOX}Vesely Will Work Out for Teams

Jan Vesely will work out for the Washington Wizards, Utah Jazz and Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday and he expects to meet with the Pistons as well, reports Vince Ellis of The Detroit Free Press.

As Ellis mentioned, Vesely wasn’t supposed to work out for anyone before the draft, but both he and Bismack Biyombo have changed their positions and are now willing play in front of coaches and scouts.

Is Klay Thompson the Next Reggie Miller?

An impeccable source has told Washington State shooting guard Klay Thompson that he might be the next Reggie Miller.

“Donnie Walsh told me that after I worked out for the New York Knicks,” Thompson told Marc Berman of the New York Post. “I shot the ball pretty well in their workout and, because we have similar builds and similar size, Donnie told me how I really, strongly reminded him of Reggie Miller.”

The outgoing Knicks president drafted Miller as president of the Pacers in 1987.

Berman also goes on to write that the Knicks considered trading up, perhaps in an effort to get Thompson, but feel they’ll get a contributor with the 17th overall pick. They also could consider adding another pick because they don’t have a second-rounder this year.

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