From John Focke/Timberwolves site: Getting To Know Dave Wohl
Dave Wohl: AI thought they have a big piece in Al Jefferson. Having been with Al in Boston, I know the strides Al has made. I thought he really had a breakout year and you now have a piece that you know can get you a lot of points and rebounds on a given night, even against the really good teams. I think the draft picks that they took in Jonny Flynn and Ricky Rubio, especially gives you the potential to have two guards who I think have the chance to turnout to be terrific players in our league. I also thought Wayne Ellington was a terrific pick. I had watched Wayne for a couple of years in college. You know, Corey Brewer is an interesting player to me because I had watched him at Florida and he had the injury last year where I think he really didn’t get to have the kind of year in terms of minutes that he probably would have had. So, I’m anxious to see how Corey can comeback healthy. Ryan Gomes has proved to be a very reliable, consistent player and I thought the acquisition of Ryan Hollins was another addition to the bigs along with Al and Kevin Love, who I thought had a terrific rookie year too. So, I think there is a lot of young potential with this team and again as coaches, it’s our job to get them going in the right direction and develop some of their skills and help Kurt blend them into the team concept he wants.
From Scott Howard-Cooper/NBA.com: For Rubio, now comes the hard part
Rubio can get traded, probably his hoped-for outcome, or Flynn or Sessions can get traded, but there is no way around the news of the moment that Rubio has moved himself backward more than the Timberwolves have taken a hit. It’s Rubio who is two years farther away from the all-important second contract and the potential for serious Monopoly money, and it is Rubio who will face greater scrutiny than ever the next two years with his team in Barcelona and the Spanish national squad in the 2010 world championships. While the hype is good for his marketing and would have been good for ticket sales on this continent, he’s got two years of NBA nit-picking and backlash ahead.
The mess is a setback for the Timberwolves, no question. And if Stephen Curry or DeMar DeRozan become dynamic scorers who could have been paired with Flynn for a backcourt with, you know, a shooting guard and a point guard, Kahn will pay for it with bloody ears. It will make Kevin McHale dealing rookie lottery pick Brandon Roy to the Trail Blazers for rookie lottery pick Randy Foye and cash on draft night 2006 seem like a brief setback, given Kahn’s risky call to go point guard-point guard with the fifth and sixth picks and saying Rubio and Flynn could play together. It’s just that Rubio made himself, not Kahn, the real target by saying he wanted to come, then apparently backing out of an agreement to come, then saying it would be simpler to not come.
The mess is a setback for the Timberwolves, no question. And if Stephen Curry or DeMar DeRozan become dynamic scorers who could have been paired with Flynn for a backcourt with, you know, a shooting guard and a point guard, Kahn will pay for it with bloody ears. It will make Kevin McHale dealing rookie lottery pick Brandon Roy to the Trail Blazers for rookie lottery pick Randy Foye and cash on draft night 2006 seem like a brief setback, given Kahn’s risky call to go point guard-point guard with the fifth and sixth picks and saying Rubio and Flynn could play together. It’s just that Rubio made himself, not Kahn, the real target by saying he wanted to come, then apparently backing out of an agreement to come, then saying it would be simpler to not come.
From what I’ve seen and heard of him, Rubio does indeed have incredible court vision and is an outstanding passer as well. However, he lacks strength, a consistent jump shot and the ability to play acceptable defense. And, yes, since he backed out after the T-Wolves had reached a buyout agreement with his Spanish team, it was strictly Rubio’s decision to avoid playing in the NBA for the time being.
One key consideration in this whole business is that Rubio didn’t exactly distinguish himself when playing against Team USA last summer in Beijing. As a result, I think the kid is just plain afraid to go up against NBA players for 82 games.
One key consideration in this whole business is that Rubio didn’t exactly distinguish himself when playing against Team USA last summer in Beijing. As a result, I think the kid is just plain afraid to go up against NBA players for 82 games.
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