Ricky Rubio's plans for the 2009-10 basketball season are anything but clear at this point. But one thing seems certain: he won't be playing for DKV Joventut.
The Associated Press is reporting that Rubio plans to part ways with his current team, telling reporters, "I want to play in a winning team, on a team that can achieve many things."
If you're thinking "that rules out the T-Wolves," you're not the first.
A couple of Spanish teams -- notably Real Madrid -- are reportedly interested in acquiring Rubio. But this news brings to mind a more interesting scenario, first raised by Henry Abbott's TrueHoop blog in early July. Long story short, if Rubio plays in a professional league this year, the T-Wolves retain his rights. But if he sits out a year, he can go back into the draft. As Abbott explained:
The way the collective bargaining agreement works, the Timberwolves hold Rubio's NBA rights so long as they make him an offer, and he plays professional ball in some FIBA-sanctioned league, which is just about all of the leagues he'd consider playing in. But if he doesn't play professionally anywhere, then he can be right back in next year's draft.Obviously, there are major problems with this approach. He'd still need to get out of his contract. He'd be giving up a year of his professional career -- theoretically, a year of fat paychecks. But stranger things have happened. In baseball, J.D. Drew passed up a major league contract with the Phillies and played for the St. Paul Saints for a year, and Stephen Strasburg - the first overall pick in the 2009 MLB Draft - is considering a similar move.
Has anyone seen Rubio talking to Scott Boras recently?
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