For the first time since March 9 of last year, Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio will don a jersey and play in an NBA game against the Dallas Mavericks at the Target Center tonight.

“I’m excited to get back on the floor with my teammates and play in front of the best fans in the NBA at Target Center,” Rubio said in a release sent out by the team. “After a long recovery, this is the first step in my getting back on the court and helping my teammates. Thank you to the fans for their support over the last nine months.’’

One thing Head Coach Rick Adelman stressed was that nobody should put unrealistic expectations on Rubio early in his return.

“I think some people, they think that he’s going to come back and everything’s going to be OK,” he said. “You’ve got to give him some time to see where he’s at. He’d only played last year 40-some games. … I’m not putting any expectations on him.”

via Jerry Zgoda of The Star Tribune