With the NBA trade deadline less than two weeks away, members of the Utah Jazz certainly aren’t oblivious to the outside chatter surrounding them. Memphis’ Mike Conley Jr. and Washington’s Otto Porter Jr. are among the names reportedly being thrown around in Jazz land as possible targets. But as the Twitter general managers debate and numerous reports surface, Ricky Rubio sees his name being thrust into potential deals without much emotion.
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“I was in Minnesota traded like 20 times,” Rubio said. “Until it doesn’t happen, you have to really don’t pay attention to that. A lot of them are just rumors and just 5 percent are true, so if it happens it happens, but I’m committed 100 percent to this team, to the community, and nothing’s going to change.”
Even with the Jazz winning seven of their last eight games, players understand the NBA is a business always in search of better opportunities — hence, former Jazzman Alec Burks learning he was traded for Kyle Korver ahead of the Jazz’s road contest versus Brooklyn in November. “Sometimes we forget, but this is a business and we saw it with AB (Alec Burks), a guy who was here eight years, and right before a game he was gone, and that’s it,” Rubio recalled. “That hits you. “As a team, it’s hard when a trade happens, especially when you have a team that connected, but I know and understand it’s a business and Kyle (Korver) is helping the team a lot,” he continued. “It was a great move so there’s balance to putting too much commitment to being a friend to somebody. That happens at every work; if they got a better job offer or the boss just decides to cut personnel, that happens. It happens in every business. I understand that this is a game and that’s why we love the game, but at the end of the day it’s a business.”
The Utah Jazz have made all players aside from Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert and Joe Ingles available, league sources say, leaving Ricky Rubio and Raul Neto on the block. Rubio still has one year and over $14 million left on his contract, rendering him a much more difficult player to move. Neto’s $1.5 million deal is non-guaranteed after this season, and could easily fit on several team’s cap sheets.
Sam Amick on Utah: “Listen, my understanding of Utah’s situation is that they’re as much of an open shop as there is in the league right now. Whether it’s Derrick Favors or Rodney Hood or even Ricky Rubio, they want to turn the page. They want to maximize Rudy Gobert’s prime. … Utah is going to look at everything right now. They obviously don’t feel like they have their core and they’re trying to figure things out. But yeah, I think Rodney gets moved. I think Derrick will draw decent interest. And the Rubio one, I didn’t know what to make of it. But if they are truly open to parting ways with Ricky, I think he’d have a good market too.”
The Utah Jazz announced today that following the successful outcome of his physical, the team’s acquisition of point guard Ricky Rubio from Minnesota is complete and Rubio is now officially a member of the Utah Jazz.
Ricky Rubio: Basketball brought me here 6 years ago. I didn't know much about Minnesota, and now I'm proud to call it home. You never know what this journey will bring you, and I wouldn't change a bit of mine over the last 6 years. I remember arriving here like it was yesterday. I stepped out of the airport and was overwhelmed with your support. It's something I'll never forget.
Ricky Rubio: What we have in Minnesota is special and you don't know that until you live there. You helped me to grow as a player, but more importantly as a person. I learned a lot, met incredible people who became part of my family and will always be in my heart.... especially you, Flip. I gave my best night after night. I'm sorry we couldn't make the playoffs because you deserve it. I am grateful to the Timberwolves organization and all of my coaches, trainers and staff. Finally, I want to thank all of the amazing teammates I was fortunate to play alongside for the last 6 years. I wish nothing but the best for you guys.
Rudy Gobert: Let's get it @rickyrubio9 !!!
Rudy Gobert: Let's get it @Ricky Rubio !!!
Patrick Fenelon: Worth noting: Ricky really really really doesn't like Rudy Gobert. That could be fascinating. Rudy Gobert: You can delete your account now 😂
The Utah Jazz announced today that the team has acquired point guard Ricky Rubio from the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for a protected future first-round pick from Oklahoma City, pending the outcome of a successful physical.
Tony Jones: The Ricky Rubio trade is happening, sources tell The Salt Lake Tribune. Deal is close to being done
Spencer Checketts: Breaking News: The Utah Jazz have reached a deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves to acquire Ricky Rubio.
Spencer Checketts: The Jazz will send Oklahoma City's 1st round pick to Minnesota in exchange for Rubio.
Marc Stein: I'm told Minnesota will be get a 2018 first-round pound to trade Ricky Rubio into Utah cap space. @Tony Jones first to report deal happening
Shams Charania: Minnesota and Utah are in active discussions on a deal to send guard Ricky Rubio to the Jazz, league sources tell The Vertical.
Ricky Rubio: I don't like rumors. From my experience, I feel a bit uncomfortable with all those rumors. Till it happens (if it happens), you don't have to pay attention to rumors. One would like to get a bit more respect from the club, but that's how business works and they look for what's best for them without thinking about the player and you have to accept it.
Marc Stein: Follow-up to yesterday's Ricky Rubio story: League sources say Utah is among the teams to express trade interest in the veteran point guard.
Marc Stein: League sources say Minnesota, in the wake of the Jimmy Butler deal, remains intent on trading Ricky Rubio as it searches for more shooting.
Jon Krawczynski: Wolves certainly considering trade scenarios for Rubio as free agency nears. I'll caution though: it's by no means a sure thing.
Jon Krawcynski: Obviously things can change quickly, but Layden said wolves were excited about Rubio's 2nd half. "He's going to have a great career here."
Jeff Zillgitt: Hearing the Timberwolves are still trying to trade Ricky Rubio and find a new point guard via free agency.
The Timberwolves aren’t content with their point guard situation and, according to league sources, are pushing hard to trade veteran Ricky Rubio. There is also some uncertainty in the organization about Kris Dunn, who was their top selection last season.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Once again, Ricky Rubio is an active name in Minnesota's trade discussions, league sources tell @The Vertical.
Sources say Mavs and Timberwolves discussed swapping Wesley Matthews and the No. 9 pick for Ricky Rubio and No. 7. However, a source described those talks as "dead" at this point.
Mike Fisher: #Mavs have had in-house talks about the trade availability of #Timberwolves PG Ricky Rubio - and about drafting PG Frank Ntilikina, too.
Mike Fisher: #Mavs have had in-house talks about the trade availability of #Timberwolves PG Ricky Rubio - and about drafting PG Frank Ntilikina, too.
There’s another guard who is on the Knicks’ radar though -- and he isn’t draft eligible. Some members of the organization would again like to try to pursue Minnesota’s Ricky Rubio in a trade this offseason, sources said. The Knicks were close to completing a deal shortly before the trade deadline centered around Derrick Rose and Rubio. Talks continued until shortly before the deadline.
Per league sources with knowledge of the situation, some Knicks decision-makers see trading for Rubio as a viable option this offseason.
The worst-kept secret in the NBA is that the Timberwolves are ready to move on from guard Ricky Rubio, and it seems that Rubio may feel the same way. The Wolves entertained a few things last summer involving Rubio and revisited his trade value at the trade deadline back in February. The problem with moving Rubio around the draft is that he counts $13.5 million against the cap in trade at the draft. That number increases to $14.25 million in July, but some teams would have cap space to offset that number. Rubio has one more season after next on his deal, making the remaining debt to Rubio two years and roughly $29 million.
Sources near the Knicks situation said it’s also possible the team looks to Rubio as the immediate answer at point guard and swings for the fences in the draft targeting a huge upside player like Jonathan Isaac, especially as the Knicks try to move on from Carmelo Anthony this summer.
Maybe Jeff Schwartz will think it's nice to have a relationship with certain NBA teams when it comes time to find a home for Ricky Rubio. Up until the last couple days, Rubio, the 26-year-old Minnesota point guard, has been repped by Fegan. His unavailability has sent Rubio across the street to Schwartz, and while I'm not at all predicting this makes for some automatic pipeline of Rubio to Dallas, it is worth adding another log to the fire of what the Mavs want to do at point guard here. The other logs? *The Timberwolves have been dangling Rubio in trade for 18 months. *Their Draft Night plans -- draft another point guard in addition to the kid Kris Dunn? -- might put Rubio on the market at an even cheaper price.
The Mavs have no interest in paying "trade-market value'' for Rubio or for Phoenix point Eric Bledsoe ... though on Draft Night, their price might be at an all-time low because picks are golden right then, moreso than players.
One other two-way player to keep an eye on? Ricky Rubio. Some in the organization were hopeful after the trade deadline that they could revisit their attempts to acquire Rubio from the Minnesota Timberwolves in the offseason, per sources.
Ricky Rubio on if he wants to stay in Minnesota and win there: "I want to win." When asked if he wants to win as a member of the Timberwolves: "We'll see. It's not my call. I have two years left here and they make the calls."
There are members of the organization who also see Jrue Holiday and Jeff Teague as free agent targets. At the deadline, some discussed the idea of revisiting trade talks for Minnesota's Ricky Rubio as well.
His Minnesota Timberwolves had conversations with several teams, perhaps most notably with the New York Knicks as the deadline approached Thursday afternoon. In the end, the Wolves decided not to trade their point guard for Derrick Rose, meaning they will make their push for the eighth seed in the Western Conference with Rubio as their starter. "As pros, we know what's the deal. But yeah, this time felt a little different," Rubio said Thursday. "It's all rumors. Until it doesn't go down, you don't believe it."
Wolves president and coach Tom Thibodeau said the team never got very close to making a move with Rubio or anyone else. But when asked if he felt compelled to talk to Rubio after the harried couple of days of rumors, Thibodeau said he had no plans to seek that out. "You're expected to be professional," Thibodeau said. "Everyone has a job to do. Come in, do your job. You can't get lost in the other stuff. That's what the expectations are."
For much of Thursday afternoon, the Knicks and Timberwolves were locked in a staring contest in their talks on a potential Derrick Rose deal. Phil Jackson and the Knicks were looking for a second asset in a potential Rose-for-Ricky Rubio swap, per sources. The Timberwolves were unwilling to give up that second asset, whether it was a draft pick or a player. They made that stance clear as late as a half-hour before the deadline. It became a matter of who would blink first.
Shortly before the deadline, sources say members of the Knicks organization lowered their demands of that second asset. According to ESPN’s Marc Stein, the Knicks eventually offered the Wolves a Rubio-for-Rose trade, straight up. Sources say that deal was offered minutes before the deadline. According to Stein, Minnesota balked at the deal.
Marc Stein: At the finish line, league sources say, New York was prepared to trade Derrick Rose for Ricky Rubio straight up. But the Wolves balked.
Marc Stein: On Deadline Day, Minnesota ultimately decided to walk away from the Ricky Rubio-for-Derrick Rose trade, league sources say
Ian Begley: A half hour ago, MIN had been unwilling to give up an additional asset in talks with NYK on a Rose trade, per source. Who blinks first here?
Adrian Wojnarowski: Minnesota remains engaged with several teams on a Ricky Rubio trade, including New York, league sources tell @The Vertical.
Marc Stein: The Knicks and Timberwolves remain engaged in trade talks toward a deal headlined by Derrick Rose and Ricky Rubio, league sources tell ESPN.
Tim Bontemps: Ricky Rubio remains available, with Wolves having talked to Knicks, Pistons and others. After weeks of talks, hard to see him not moving.
Sam Amick: The T-Wolves have continued to shop Ricky Rubio to non-Knicks teams too, even as they've continued to talk with NY about a Derrick Rose deal
Jake Fischer: The Timberwolves are willing to part with Shabazz Muhammad to help move Ricky Rubio, according to multiple sources.
Adrian Wojnarowski: Minnesota's Ricky Rubio remains a significant target for the Knicks today, league sources tell @The Vertical.
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Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau declined to address that he and his team have held negotiations to trade Rubio to New York in a deal for forthcoming free-agent Derrick Rose or points elsewhere, among other reported discussions that also include reserve forward Shabazz Muhammad.
The team’s prime candidate to be traded by then, point guard Ricky Rubio, declined interview requests after Wednesday’s practice, choosing to wait until after practice on Thursday.
Minnesota arrived at the All-Star break a mere 3.5 games out of the eighth playoff spot in the Western Conference, and rival front offices are becoming more skeptical that Thibodeau will pull the trigger on a Rubio deal. One thing about Thibodeau: He has a visceral need to win games, and there's a feeling both inside and outside his organization that he lacks the patience to turn the team—and the season—over to an inexperienced point guard. "It's not like Kris Dunn is knocking the door down," one of the rival executives said.
Even if the Wolves do trade Rubio, there's a belief among rival teams that it would signal Thibodeau's intention to pursue a veteran point guard in free agency, such as George Hill or even Rose himself — not that Dunn was ascending to the starting job.
There have been whispers the aforementioned players could be part of a package deal for Minnesota point guard Ricky Rubio, whom the Bucks looked into acquiring at last year's trading deadline. Rubio is expected to be dealt to open a starting spot for highly-regarded rookie Kris Dunn
Sources have told The Post that Thibodeau, since November, doesn’t believe in Rubio as his future point guard despite a long-term contract. The Knicks had interest in Rubio, much more of a playmaker than Rose, at last year’s trading deadline. Ever since Rubio’s was drafted in 2009 the Knicks have had a fascination with him because of their Barcelona-based European scout, Kevin Wilson.
“The Wolves think Rubio needs a new environment for his own good, he’s been there for years and lost a lot,’’ one NBA official said of the Wolves thinking. “He’s a good player, but not a top-level starting point guard. Thibs seems to want anyone he’s coached before with the Bulls.’’
Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio started following Kristaps Porzingis on Twitter on Wednesday. Whether they become teammates to join a growing legion of Europeans in the Knicks’ locker room likely won’t be answered until the trade deadline at 3 p.m. Thursday
Rubio would fit in well in the Knicks’ locker room. Rookie center Willy Hernangomez, who played with Rubio on the Spanish Olympic Team in August, went to Mexico with his brother and hung out with Rubio over All-Star Weekend. Hernangomez played in the Rising Stars Challenge on Friday in New Orleans before departing for Mexico.
A Rubio-for-Rose swap works under the salary-cap guidelines, as explained by ESPN’s Tom Penn. Some in the Knicks organization are wary of taking back any player who has multiple years remaining on his contract, according to sources familiar with the team’s thinking. That might factor in if Rubio is being offered -- the 26-year-old is under contract for a total of $29 million over the next two seasons -- though others who have been in touch with the Knicks recently came away with the impression that Jackson is a fan of Rubio.
Ricky Rubio is by far the most likely Wolves player to be traded before Thursday’s deadline. You’d be hard pressed to talk to a team that hasn’t heard from Minnesota about the point guard. League sources confirmed the Wolves’ pursuit of Reggie Jackson, and the team is willing to attach Shabazz Muhammad to help move Rubio.
Brian Windhorst: One of the most likely players to be traded between now and Thursday afternoon is Ricky Rubio. And what the Knicks have been talking to the Wolves about is a Ricky Rubio for Derrick Rose swap. But it’s not only the Knicks that are an option here.
Brian Windhorst: The Pistons have had talks with the Timberwolves about Ricky Rubio and Reggie Jackson, and if there’s a second point guard that I would bet to get traded by Thursday would be Reggie Jackson. Here’s the problem though, the Timberwolves don’t want Reggie Jackson, from sources telling me, so they’re looking for a third team.
MP: There has been a lot of talk about the fact that you and Rubio haven’t been comfortable with each other from the beginning. Is there any truth to that? TT: No. My job — and I have told him this from the beginning — is to lay out the plan and tell him the truth as I see it each and every day. And then we are all working together. When you look at what a coach does, it is leadership, it is communication, it is teaching, it is motivation. It really comes down to those four things.
Chicago Bulls and New York Knicks are "very interested" in acquiring Ricky Rubio, according to Movistar+ journalist Antoni Daimiel.
Van Gundy said he normally doesn’t address trade rumors with players, but when Jackson’s agent called general manager Jeff Bower, he felt the need to text Jackson on Friday night. “I just said, ‘Look, this is the crazy season. We’re not trading you for Ricky Rubio,' and that was it,” Van Gundy said. “I normally don’t address it, but the fact that it was out there and it concerned his agent enough to call, I addressed it, but these discussions happen all the time …”
Pistons president-coach Stan Van Gundy poured cold water over the rumor earlier in the day, but it was time for Jackson’s thoughts. “Thanks for giving me the news,” Jackson said. “I don’t even listen to y’all so most of the time I just go home, chill, watch TV, play games, keep with my brother. I don’t really follow all that. I’m just happy to be able to play basketball.”
The Wolves, sources say, are actively shopping Rubio and have tried to engage numerous teams about a potential deal involving him. Sources say Minnesota is attaching swingman Shabazz Muhammad to offers in hopes of enticing a team to take on Rubio, who has two seasons and just over $29 million left on his current contract.
"Around the league, every GM is having 10 to 15 discussions a day," Van Gundy said. "So, did somebody mention any specific trade you have? The answer is probably yes. That doesn't mean it's considered or anything else.I texted Reggie and just said, 'This is crazy season and we're not trading you for Ricky Rubio.' That was it. I don't normally address it, but the fact that it was out there and it concerned his agent enough to call, I addressed it."
"I'm not denying that the discussion took place -- they take place all the time, but that's a lot different than consideration," Van Gundy said. "And clearly, we didn't make that move. If we want to report on all those … Well, we wanted to see if Cleveland would go (Michael) Gbinije for LeBron. That discussion took place. It took place. If I ask about a guy, that discussion took place. It's all so much bullshit."
Jon Krawczynski: Ricky Rubio is away from team for personal reasons (not trade). Will miss game Sunday
Detroit Pistons president-coach Stan Van Gundy denied an ESPN report that there are currently trade discussions with the Minnesota Timberwolves involving point guard Reggie Jackson. In a series of texts to the Free Press, Van Gundy said the organization doesn't "have a single thing under consideration." ESPN.com, citing unnamed sources, is reporting a Jackson-for-Ricky Rubio multiplayer swap has been discussed.
Marc Stein: Any deal would expand to involve other players -- such as Shabazz Muhammad -- but sources say for now the teams are in the talking stage
Van Gundy said general manager Jeff Bower is doing his due diligence with teams. "Jeff is in constant contact with every other NBA team as he should be," Van Gundy wrote. "That is normal NBA personnel work. Nothing more. Nothing less."
Sources told ESPN that no deal appeared imminent Friday but said the teams have engaged in dialogue this week on a potential multiplayer exchange that would be headlined by Rubio and Jackson.
Marc Stein: Story going online now with @Chris Haynes: ESPN sources say Minnesota and Detroit have discussed a PG swap of Ricky Rubio and Reggie Jackson
Now that a Yahoo Sports report Tuesday said the Wolves are “actively shopping” him to make room eventually for rookie Kris Dunn, Rubio said before Thursday night’s game against the Clippers that he will just play on. “Just do what I do,” said Rubio, who went scoreless in the first half Thursday and didn’t play in the second because of tightness in his left hip. “My name or every name is going to be out there at some point, but you can only worry about things you can control. Right now, what I can control is playing my best and do what I’ve been doing.”
Jon Krawczynski: Before Wolves left for the road, Rubio was very encouraged by what he was seeing. My take: he wants to stay. But we'll see what happens. The Kris Dunn issue remains real. Definite feeling that he's going to one day be the PG here. So that certainly factors in to the thinking. But Thibs has shown that he's not ready to give Dunn heavy minutes yet. And that's why they're not going to give Rubio away.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are actively shopping point guard Ricky Rubio in trade proposals, league sources told The Vertical.
