Ricky Rubio's Unconventional Farewell: A Career of Surprises
Explore the unexpected turns in Ricky Rubio's career as he bids farewell. From draft day hype to challenges faced, it's a unique NBA journey worth reflecting on.
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I originally planned to write about the Timberwolves’ first two-game losing streak of the season. At first I thought that New Year’s Day’s loss in New York was attributable to, well, playing a matinee on New Year’s Day but that loss with the team’s recent play and Wednesday’s loss to New Orleans tells me this team has hit a wall.
Am I concerned? Not really. Even if this team wins 50 games, that means they will lose 30 games. Not only that, this team is halfway through a brutal stretch of schedule. This team has its flaws but they are still good and will probably be fine. Today, we’re here to talk about the retirement of Ricky Rubio. Rubio announced over the summer that he was stepping away from the NBA to prioritize his mental health. On Thursday, Rubio made his departure official.
Man, where do I begin with Rubio? As a fan, I remember the excitement when the Timberwolves drafted him in 2009. Rubio was a YouTube phenom with his imaginative passes as this teenager playing against men. Rereading that sentence sounds like a Disney movie. Rubio was a fan favorite for his upbeat and positive public persona as one of the more likable players not only post-KG but in franchise history.
As a media member, Rubio was always available, even after tough losses. And the losing did affect him. His demeanor after many games was a contrast to his cheery on-court persona. There were times when the media scrum would approach Rubio slumped in a chair at his locker, but would sit up straight and almost mumble his answers.
I do not blame Rubio for this, though.
The team never won more than 40 games with Rubio on the team and while part of that is attributable to his flaws as a player, the team always felt halfway out on him. Rubio was a constant subject of trade rumors through a revolving door of coaches and general managers. Not only was Rubio, a competitive person, in this terrible basketball situation, he seldom had job security. This was a player the franchise invested the fifth-overall pick in 2009 and when he was not an immediate fit, he became the subject of trade rumors for years.
While it is not easy to just go out and get them, surrounding Rubio with shooters should have been the no-brainer move but the team was never able to come close. Based on what we know now, you do not build around a guy like Rubio. But we did not know that then and if the team was unsure, they likely should have moved him instead of trying the half-in, half-out approach.
The Most Glaring Weakness
Rubio entered the league as a poor shooter and finished his career as a 38 percent shooter from the field and 32 percent from 3. The team did hire Mike Penberthy as a shooting specialist for the 2014-’15 season, Rubio plays just 22 games and does not receive the potential full benefits of his services. Penberthy is not replaced and Rubio plays two more seasons before being jettisoned to Utah after the 2017 season.
Not only did Rubio struggle with jump shots from anywhere, he finished his career as a 50.6 percent shooter at the rim. This lack of a scoring threat often limited Rubio’s teams in crunch time. There is one game I always recall during his first stint with the Wolves in Oklahoma City where Rubio’s defender helps off of him and the Thunder double Kevin Love and the possession goes nowhere. Sure, he had a few clutch shots you can find on YouTube, but teams were fine with letting Rubio beat them.
(This was a different Thunder game than the one referenced above, FYI.)
As hard as Rubio worked, the shot never came around. That was always the frustration with the way people talked about Rubio, like he did not try to improve. He knew it was a weakness and worked on it every offseason. Rubio is likely viewed differently if he could add a reliable shot or finishing ability to his passing and decent defense.
Derailed By Injuries
Of course, you cannot discuss Rubio’s career without mentioning the injuries. Rubio played 421-of-558 possible games in Minnesota. For his career, Rubio played 698-of-951 possible games. For his career, he missed just over 26 percent of his games due to a variety of injuries. It’s not like he had bad knees or ankle issues. Kobe Bryant bumps into his knee in his rookie season and freakishly sustains an ACL tear or later when he falls in Sacramento and hurts his wrist or should and misses time. The guy just had bad luck and that likely impacted his development, the team’s commitment and overall career.
For all his injuries, I cannot remember Rubio coming into a season out of shape but it is probably difficult for a player to work on their game when they are injured or a team to build around or to obtain proper value for them in a trade. It’s all unfortunate.
However, Rubio was resilient. He played 75, 77 and 76 games from 2016-2018 and 82 in 2014. This was after playing just 47 games in 2014, 57 in 2013 and 22 in 2015. Counting the COVID-shortened season, Rubio didn’t miss more than 14 games from 2016-2021. It took him until his fifth season, but he eventually became a reliably healthy NBA player.
Was It Everything You Imagined?
Rubio had a successful NBA career. If you play 12 seasons in the league, you had a successful career even if it did not match the incoming hype. I’m not sure if this is reassuring, but this is my same argument for Sam Bowie and Kwame Brown. Rubio did not become the player we imagined in 2009 but he was a quality starter in the league for a long time despite shooting being his biggest weakness when the skill became a premium during his career. He even brought the Jazz to the playoffs twice as a starter and the Cavaliers once as a rotation player.
I remember listening to Bill Simmons and Ryen Russillo doing a re-draft of the 2009 draft and one of them argued that if you replay Rubio’s career multiple times, the way his career plays out is one of the worst outcomes. It does make you wonder if he goes to a less tumultuous franchise, ironically, much like Steph Curry in that same draft, and Rubio’s career is different. Granted, the last 10-15 years was a Golden Age for point guards, but it would have been hard to imagine Rubio not getting one all-star or All-NBA appearance when it was all said or done. Rubio’s lone season award was All-Rookie in the 2012 season and a handful of seasons where he received All-Defensive Team votes.
Ultimately, Rubio was a fun and useful player and a great teammate whose career did not go as we expected. Whether you blame the franchise, injury luck or whatever, I think that is fair. What’s important to remember is that Rubio still had a successful career, will remain a fan-favorite and will likely be happier if he chooses to return to play closer to home.
Further Reading: Should the Timberwolves Retire Ricky Rubio’s Number?