Rubio, Rubio...

... where for art thou Rubio? That is the question I and all Wolves fans will be asking in the coming months and perhaps years. I finally have the chance to share a few thoughts on the Rubio situation. (I had a whole week off from work and somehow I has even less time to work on the blog!)

First, drafting Rubio with the 5th pick was absolutely the right move even if Rubio never plays for Minnesota. Rubio falling to 5 was an absolute gift. In this year's draft, Rubio was one of maybe two players who have superstar potential. Don't get me wrong -- I think guys like Jonny Flynn can be high quality players, but I'd be very surprised if Flynn turns out to be the next Jason Kidd. Rubio can be the next Jason Kidd. There's no guarantee, but his ceiling is unbelievably high.

The Wolves now have the rights to a possible superstar and someone who will definite fill the seats -- if he puts on a Wolves uniform. At this point that is the biggest problem. There have been countless media "comments" that he may stay with DKV Joventut or he may sign with another European team. I think all of these accounts need to be taken with an even greater grain of salt than most NBA rumors. We have no idea how truthful any of these Spanish-to-English translated reports may be. Until I hear official word from the Timberwolves, I'm going to assume there is no news on the Rubio front.

So how will the whole Rubio situation play out? I think Kahn is in it for the long haul. I think Rubio will stay in Europe for one more season while the Wolves hold onto his rights. This will give the Wolves a chance to evaluate Jonny Flynn's play. If Flynn is surprisingly great, Rubio will be traded before next year's draft. If Flynn disappoints then I think we will finally get a shot at seeing Rubio in a Wolves uniform since he won't need to worry about being shown up by another point guard on his own team.

But, I am still hoping that the Wolves and Rubio can work something out that will allow him to play in Minnesota this season. That would be a great reward for a new season ticket holder like me.

Dos Point Guards

The 2009 NBA draft is now in the books, and it was definitely exciting for the Wolves. It was definitely a point guard festival with the Wolves selecting four point guards with their six picks. Thankfully, two of those picks were traded for future consideration.

Wolves fans were pleasantly surprised and extremely excited to land the dynamic Spaniard, Ricky Rubio, with the 5th pick. (I still can't believe it. We could have Ricky Rubio in Minnesota next year!) The excitement quickly turned to confusion when they selected another point guard, Jonny Flynn, with the 6th pick. After that they grabbed Ty Lawson (another point guard) and the confusion level went through the roof before it was quickly announced that Lawson was being traded for a future draft pick. The Wolves also landed a quality shooting guard in Wayne Ellington with their final first round pick. In the second round, the Wolves selected point guard Nick Calathes (and traded him away) and something named Henk Norel (one of Rubio's teammates in Spain who I don't think will ever see an NBA court as a player).

If you buy into Kahn's reasoning that both Rubio and Flynn can be key players on the court at the same time, Wolves fans should be on clould 9, right? Well, we are Wolves fans, so things aren't perfect. Rubio may not play in Minnesota next year or ever. Ugh. More of my thoughts on this later.

Note: I've been busier at work recently so I haven't been able to comment on the recent Wolves news much lately. I hope to have a little more time soon to be able to add some in depth comments on the post-draft roster and the coaching search.