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Rubio meets with the media before nearly every road game -- a one-shot deal to satisfy so many requests for his time -- and patiently answers mostly the same questions over and over again, including the one about his suspect shooting. "I don't want to show anybody nothing," he said Friday in New Jersey. "I know what I can do. What I'm able to do and I'm working hard to do it. People can talk about my shooting. I know I have to improve a lot, but it's in my mind. I don't need to show, to prove anybody." Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio 

MM: You and Ricky Rubio speak the same language. Tell us about your relationship? JJ Barea: “It’s great, he’s a great teammate and a great person to be around. He works hard and we can talk Spanish to each other without anybody knowing. If we have to say somebody is crazy or something, we’ll do it in Spanish,” Barea said. CBS Minnesota

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, Jose Juan Barea 

The Cavaliers’ Kyrie Irving and the Timberwolves’ Ricky Rubio today were named the NBA Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month, respectively, for games played from the start of the season (Dec. 25) through January. Irving leads all rookies in scoring (18.1 ppg), ranks second in assists (4.9 apg) and field goal percentage (.511), and is third in three-point field goal percentage (.411). On Jan. 27 against the New Jersey Nets, he scored 21 of his season-high 32 points in the fourth quarter, including 17 in the last 2:58, becoming the first rookie to score at least 21 points in the fourth quarter of a game since Marcus Williams of the Nets did it on Nov. 24, 2006. HoopsWorld

Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, Kyrie Irving 

Rubio leads the NBA in fourth-quarter assists with 46. By comparison, the next-highest is Derrick Rose with 36. Over his last three games, Rubio has seven assists and zero turnovers in the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves are 2-1 in those games with a five-point loss to the Lakers sandwiched in between two wins. During a three-game winning streak from January 16-20, Rubio had seven assists and two turnovers while the Timberwolves were a combined +33 in those fourth quarters. Rubio had 12 assists and five turnovers while his team was +45 in the second halves of those games. Rubio is +38 in the fourth quarter this season, which ranks third in the NBA among point guards behind Derrick Rose and Jrue Holiday. Rubio's shooting has drastically improved in the fourth quarter as compared to the first three quarters. He's shooting 42.0 percent from the field and 46.7 percent on 3-point attempts in the fourth quarter, but is shooting just 36.3 percent from the field and 30.3 percent on 3-point attempts in the first three quarters. ESPN.com

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio 

Rubio asked Bryant if he would be there with Team USA. Bryant said yes, so then the Wolves rookie made a prediction: "You know you're getting the silver medal," Rubio said. "You know that." Meaning, of course, that Spain would win the gold. A brash statement? Perhaps. But not outlandish: Spain won the 2006 title at the World Basketball Championships. In the 2008 Beijing Games, Rubio and Gasol were part of a team that lost 118-107 to the Americans in the final. "I'm taking bets," Bryant responded. "If I win, I get the keys to Barcelona." Responded Rubio: "I bet what you want." Bryant: "I'll take it." All good-natured trash-talking, of course. "We'll see what's going to happen," Rubio said Monday. "It's going to be good. I mean, we have pretty good players. We'll be a pretty good team." Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Kobe Bryant, Ricky Rubio, USA Basketball, Spain 

There is a good chance Wolves forward Kevin Love will be on the U.S. team. He already has promised to put Rubio on his behind should he come down the lane on him in England. "I've been told by a few people not to get too friendly with him," Love said. Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, USA Basketball, Spain, Kevin Love 

Rubio had flashes Sunday night but shot 2 of 13 from the field, finishing with five points and eight assists. Kobe Bryant has been impressed by Rubio in the NBA. "He's fantastic," Bryant said. "He has great court vision, great poise." Orange County Register

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Kobe Bryant, Ricky Rubio 

"The first time that I came here, you were [putting down] my numbers and I worked hard this summer to not disappoint you," Rubio said following the Timberwolves' 87-79 victory over the Spurs on Friday. "I worked this summer to improve my jump shot because I knew that if I didn't practice, it would be hard playing here. "I never had like more than a two-month break just for myself since I was 17." Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio 

While Rubio said he didn't score like he has the ability to do in the previous six games [he scored 18 Friday], he said: "I knew that I could do it, because I work hard, like I said, and my confidence is high. Sometimes your shots, you're going to miss a lot, but you have to keep shooting because if not, that's going to affect you. It's going to affect your team and you can't help in any way if you don't take the shot. "Even in the last six games [before the Spurs game] I missed a lot of shots, they said that I have to keep shooting. Like I did against the Clippers, I was 0-for-10 and they were saying, 'Keep shooting, keep shooting, don't worry.' That was my teammates and the staff, they were saying that. That gives you the confidence to shoot the shot." Minneapolis Star-Tribune

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio 

Kobe Bryant to Ricky Rubio and Pau Gasol: You talking about London? Gasol: Oh yeah. Rubio: You're gonna be there? Bryant Yeah. Rubio: You know you're getting the silver medal. You know that. Bryant: [expletive]. I'm taking bets! [laughs] If I win I get the keys of Barcelona. Rubio: I bet what you want. Bryant: I take it! Marca.com

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Ricky Rubio, USA Basketball, Spain 

Gasol came to the NBA in 2001 as the draft's third overall pick and played for Memphis for the first six and a half seasons of his career. He was the second Spanish player to make the transition to the NBA; the first, Fernando Martin, played for the Portland Trail Blazers in 1986-87. So, for the current crop of Spanish NBA players, Gasol was the one who paved the way. "He's like a mirror for us," Rubio said, his accent still marked with the shrill tones and exaggerated vowels that Gasol has long dropped. "He shows us the way to come here." Fox Sports North

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Portland Trail Blazers, Pau Gasol, Ricky Rubio, Fernando Martin 

To talk to Rubio about Gasol is to endure long sighs, wide-eyed declarations that he is a great guy, a great teammate. It's all true, and Rubio defended any possible criticism of his older friend. "A lot of people say that Pau is soft," Rubio said. "I can tell you, he's not. I practiced with him a lot this summer, and he's tough. I mean, he plays hard, and one of the best things is, he's a leader. A leader can't be soft because if not we couldn't win or get to the silver medal in the Olympic games." Fox Sports North

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Pau Gasol, Ricky Rubio 

After years of watching Rubio as a pro, Gasol can estimate just what the point guard might be capable of. He thinks Rubio can average about 18 points and 10 or 11 assists long term, which would mark an improvement from his current 11.4 points and 8.8 assists. They're high expectations, but they're not unreasonable, especially when Rubio’s numbers have improved so much from the 6.6 points and 3.8 assists per game he posted over his last two seasons in Europe. Part of that improvement, Gasol said, is a result of the freedom Rubio has been given in coach Rick Adelman's offense, a freedom to which he's undoubtedly still adjusting. "He played in more of a set system back in Barcelona, but here he's just free balling," Gasol said. Fox Sports North

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Pau Gasol, Ricky Rubio 

Gasol has always been impressed with Rubio's competitiveness and knowledge for the game, as well as his passing ability. What he didn't know before December was how all of that would transfer to the NBA, and Gasol said that the two additional years Rubio spent improving his game and maturing in Europe have paid off. "He makes great decisions," Gasol said. "I think he's a guy who's not afraid to pass and make tough passes because he can make them, obviously. But he doesn't make a lot of mistakes for a rookie, especially." Fox Sports North

Los Angeles Lakers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Pau Gasol, Ricky Rubio 

Rubio, 21, has played a prominent role in the Wolves' resurgence. Thompson, who tries to watch all Timberwolves games, loves him. "He's not the Spanish Inquisition, but acquisition," Thompson said. "Ricky Rubio is one of the top five entertaining players in the game to watch. He's fun." St. Paul Pioneer Press

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio 

But the decision, no matter how much flexibility it gives the Wolves, leaves the unmistakable impression that Love wasn't offered the five-year max because he's not David Kahn's "guy." That would obviously be Ricky Rubio, whereas Love is the only player still left on the roster Kahn inherited when he took over as Wolves president of basketball operations weeks before drafting Rubio with the fifth overall pick in 2009. ESPN.com

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, David Kahn, Kevin Love 

Don't be surprised, furthermore, if Rubio doesn't even ask for "designated player" status when he's eligible for it heading into the 2014-15 season. I've been led to believe he'd prefer the same flexibility Love got anyway, with the opportunity to become an unrestricted free agent three seasons into a four-year arrangement. "I hope that Ricky gets to the point that we're talking about that," Adelman said of the Spanish point guard playing consistently well enough to earn the "designated player" status that only one player on a team's books can possess. "That would be a nice thing." "My concern was that Kevin was the first chip here," Adelman added. "He's shown what he can do, [but] I just try to stay away from the future. You don't know what can happen in three or four years with a player." ESPN.com

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, David Kahn, Kevin Love 

"As a fan, I'd pay to watch [Ricky] Rubio. I'm not going to pay to watch Kyrie [Irving] just like I'm not going to pay to watch D-Will [Deron Williams]. But if I had to coach one of them, I'd pick both those guys over Rubio. "Don't get me wrong: Rubio is good. He's exciting. But he's in the right system because [Rick] Adelman lets guys make reads and be intuitive. Rubio is so smart and mature that he can handle that. But I still worry that he's going to be like a major league pitcher and that [teams] will start to figure him out after they've seen him once. "Until he's more confident knocking down outside shots, then Kyrie is clearly ahead of him, because Kyrie is a better defender and a better outside shooter. He's not as in tune running his team as Rubio, but he can shoot, he can drive, he can defend. He values the ball and he's going to get a better feel as he gets older." ESPN.com

Cleveland Cavaliers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, David Kahn, Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving 

The decision to extend Kevin Love’s contract was an easy one for Minnesota Timberwolves President David Kahn. What wasn’t so easy was deciding whether or not to make Love the team’s “designated player,” which would have enabled them to add an extra year to the contract. Love’s camp absolutely wanted the fifth year, but sources close to the situation tell HOOPSWORLD the reason the Timberwolves didn’t want to add another year for Love was because they also have to think about Ricky Rubio down the line. HoopsWorld

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, Kevin Love 

Jerry Zgoda: Ricky when asked if he envisions a long-term future with KLove: "I hope so. I hope so." Twitter

Minnesota Timberwolves, Ricky Rubio, Kevin Love