Ricky Rubio - Take the Money and Limp

[buzzdog]

This dude needs to take his sweet, sweet time. Maybe a month before the post-season is a good time to get up to speed

Why?

Screw that. When he's ready, he's ready. Better load management for our backcourt, which we will need this season.

 

[aldamon]

I can't believe our good fortune here. Last year we lose him and we fall apart and now he's returning to a team that's already a handful without him.

The media hasn't really picked up on this yet. Seems they didn't see our nerd numbers with him last year. He's not just another guy coming back. He's not depth. We were an offensive machine with him. I can't wait until they realize the glorious truth.

 

[2 For The Brew]

I can't believe our good fortune here. Last year we lose him and we fall apart and now he's returning to a team that's already a handful without him.

The media hasn't really picked up on this yet. Seems they didn't see our nerd numbers with him last year. He's not just another guy coming back. He's not depth. We were an offensive machine with him. I can't wait until they realize the glorious truth.

I’m happy to wait for the media to figure it all out.

Part of it is good fortune, but we have a Spaniard who could be chilling in Barcelona instead of freezing in Cleveland. He’s here in large part because we have a really good franchise that treats players right. We won over Jose Calderon which helped. We have had top notch facilities and player support since Dan bought the team. Koby has built a roster of serious ballers who don’t bring drama.

This is the real story the media hasn’t figured out. The Cavaliers are a great franchise now. The Lakers and Nets are crappy franchises. THAT is our real good fortune - as fans. (I’m still haunted by the Stepien years that almost killed the NBA in Cleveland).

 

[chuck0609]

Expectations for Rubio should be tempered this year. He was playing at a peak level last year (a bit of a renaissance) and this is the second time he’s coming back from a torn ACL.
I viewed his signing as more toward the 23-24 season while he works his way back this year. Maybe that’s wrong but we’ll see where he is when he gets back.

 

[catfish]

The guy was shooting in warm up. He seems to be further along than Windler who apparently isnt even on the trip. We should see him any game now. At the very least he can take Okoro's minutes which would be a win win.

 

[ZooCrewDude]

Expectations for Rubio should be tempered this year. He was playing at a peak level last year (a bit of a renaissance) and this is the second time he’s coming back from a torn ACL.
I viewed his signing as more toward the 23-24 season while he works his way back this year. Maybe that’s wrong but we’ll see where he is when he gets back.

Rubio has the kind of veteran savvy that translates even if he’s lost a step. He’s someone that can just outsmart the other guys on a couple back to back plays as a creator which is a lot to handle when they spend the rest of the game chasing DM/DG.

That said, I’ll be curious to see how effective he is defensively… he was a menace before going down last year and a lot of that was physical effort as much as it was brains/heart.

 

[cavsfever]

Expectations for Rubio should be tempered this year. He was playing at a peak level last year (a bit of a renaissance) and this is the second time he’s coming back from a torn ACL.
I viewed his signing as more toward the 23-24 season while he works his way back this year. Maybe that’s wrong but we’ll see where he is when he gets back.

Who knows how good he will be when he gets back but i agree people shouldn’t just be assuming we are going to get everything we saw last year. A lot of his ability to break down the defense relied on a sneaky athleticism. His passing IQ will be there but who knows if he can still move like he did

 

[Lee]

Who knows how good he will be when he gets back but i agree people shouldn’t just be assuming we are going to get everything we saw last year. A lot of his ability to break down the defense relied on a sneaky athleticism. His passing IQ will be there but who knows if he can still move like he did

The other thing is we are a different team this year. We ran well when we had 2 PG's We leanred the last few years Sexton wasnt a PG. Then Rubio went down and traded Rubios lifeless body for LeVert, but LeVert can do allot, but he really isnt a PG either. The game in Detroit was saved because of Love' sability to be a big man facsilitator. leVert did admirable, but wasnt really able to be a true PG.

This year we have Garland and Mitchell, both capable of playing point. Levert doing better as a secondary ball handler when one of the 2 is out. So Rubio's role is already reduced. Not a bad thing, just a fact, we are a better team this year, Mitchell makes a world of difference. So when Rubio gets back and we are healthy, there wont be as much of an impact for rubio to make.

That said, in 20-25 minutes having to deal with Rubio being the 3rd or 4th guard (depending on what you consider LeVert) and having to try and take "advantage" of Mitchell or Garland not being in there and Rubio is the player you see during the "rest"

Not sure if i explained myself well, last year Rubio was a neccesity, this year he is a luxury, impact wont be as great, but it will still be there and I am excited to see Rubio play with this team.

 

[buzzdog]

Rubio won't have to carry the team at times, the way he did last season. He isn't stupid, he'll only be back on the floor when he feels right and knows he's ready. No hurry, but no reason to hold him back either.

 

[guitarguy]

It's not like he just got injured 3 months ago, he has been "healed" awhile now, right now they're just slowly getting him up to speed again, to be cautious. Or in other words, I think he's past the "injury", now they're just trying to build him back up again. I think his defense will still be strong as he gets back into game shape.

All in all, I agree, what a huge fortune we have having him come back. The media really has no idea, and that's fine, you hear them occasionally go, "oh yeah, and Rubio isn't even playing yet". I think his game will translate for years in the game because he's a smart player, sees everything, and can mostly have his way with any defense in terms of manipulating/tricking it to make plays happen. He may take on more of the K-Love attitude this year and just enjoy the ride, get his when he is feeling it, and not be relied on to be the star (even though there will be nights when he's the best player on the floor).

Really just stoked about it.

 

[Kizzle]

We are gonna be a handful for opposing guards bringing Caris and Rubio off the bench.


You gotta deal with Garland and Mitchell killing you and then boom they take a rest and you think you are ok, but then we bring in a former 20 ppg scorer and a guy who averaged 13 and 6 prior to injury. There’s slight reprieve but not much, factoring in your second unit will be doing most the defense on Caris and Rubio.



I really hope his athleticism isn’t completely gone. Rubio never really relied on it but he was shifty and fast when needed. If he can’t accelerate to that 2nd and 3rd hear anymore he will be a worse PG.

 

[Peacedog]

We are gonna be a handful for opposing guards bringing Caris and Rubio off the bench.


You gotta deal with Garland and Mitchell killing you and then boom they take a rest and you think you are ok, but then we bring in a former 20 ppg scorer and a guy who averaged 13 and 6 prior to injury. There’s slight reprieve but not much, factoring in your second unit will be doing most the defense on Caris and Rubio.



I really hope his athleticism isn’t completely gone. Rubio never really relied on it but he was shifty and fast when needed. If he can’t accelerate to that 2nd and 3rd hear anymore he will be a worse PG.

Caris won't be coming off the bench, because he's a starter on this team.

 

[Randolphkeys]

Donovan Mitchell is averaging over 39 minutes a game so far. This isn't the early 90s, playing a guy 40 minutes a game isn't sustainable. Last thing I'm worrying about is where Ricky fits into the rotation.

 

[N7RobBob]

Donovan Mitchell is averaging over 39 minutes a game so far. This isn't the early 90s, playing a guy 40 minutes a game isn't sustainable. Last thing I'm worrying about is where Ricky fits into the rotation.

3 OT games and 5.5 games without DG skew that higher. Hopefully we see less OT games over the next few weeks.

 

[Randolphkeys]

3 OT games and 5.5 games without DG skew that higher. Hopefully we see less OT games over the next few weeks.

I agree the OT games pushed the number higher, but it's still an excuse rather than an ideal. Last season, the Cavs rode their stars to a great record before the All Star break, but Garland, Levert and Allen were broken down entering the playoffs. Utilizing backcourt depth now does pay off later. Steph Curry played 34 minutes a night last season to lead the champs, but also took 18 load management games off.