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Klomp wrote:

Malato wrote:

Faked the camera guy out

Basti wrote:

Klomp wrote:http://hoopshype.com/videos/hoopshype/r ... st-amazing

Ricky is an awesome and very likable dude. The joy in his eyes when he talks about Rick was impressive to see. He also misses Love badly.

I wish I could have watched more games recently to see Ricky balling again. I guess I won't be able to watch many games in the next few weeks either. Too much work ahead

“@APkrawczynski: Rubio was asked how he saw Beal for the baseline between legs pass in rising stars game: "I have eyes in my back."”

Klomp wrote:http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nba-ball-dont-lie/bdl-interview-ricky-rubio-being-fancy-becoming-leader-220828836--nba.html

Players who capture the NBA world’s imagination have the misfortune of bearing the highest of public hopes, and it was under that burden that Ricky Rubio’s season seemed buried.

The point guard’s return from the ACL tear that he sustained in March was highly anticipated after his exhilarating rookie season. That the injury-plagued Timberwolves badly needed the spark he provided as a first-year player and the promise that his very presence might provide only added to the expectations.

But when Rubio finally did make his season debut on Dec. 15, he looked to be a completely different player. Some rust was to be expected after nine months without game action, but as the weeks wore on, Rubio only seemed to grow more tentative. The charms of his game were unsettled by worry and likely by lingering soreness, and the Wolves did their best to compete alongside a poor imitation of their franchise-changing floor leader.

I couldn’t tell you what happened to Rubio on Feb. 3 (a cosmic event? A particularly focused meditation session? An especially fulfilling meal?), but in a single off-day he reverted to wonderfully spirited form. Rubio had shown glimpses of his fuller game on rare occasions, but it was in a close loss to the Trail Blazers that the Spaniard finally rediscovered his basketball self. He finished with 15 points and 14 assists, and the 22-year-old hasn’t looked back since. In the last nine games, Rubio has averaged 15 points, 9.9 assists, 3.8 turnovers and 3.2 steals per 36 minutes while playing far more aggressively with the ball.

The fact that his scoring has jumped so significantly isn’t a coincidence of hot shooting, but a product of Rubio’s will. The tentativeness that defined his first 19 games is mostly absent of late, as Rubio has consistently made it a point to probe and attack defenses off the dribble. That’s quite an adjustment for a player whose lack of confidence around the rim has occasionally deterred him from driving, but the payoff has been profound. Here are a series of half-court plays showing Rubio’s assertiveness in getting into the paint and drawing fouls:

Basti wrote:Thanks sisibilio. Great read and watching Rubio gets fouled is something I like to see because I find it funny how he yells "EY" every time he gets fouled.

Basti wrote:Thanks sisibilio. Great read and watching Rubio gets fouled is something I like to see because I find it funny how he yells "EY" every time he gets fouled.

kmgarnett21 wrote: I don't remember him being able to penetrate at will and just get to the foul line last season like he has the past 10 games but I love it.

In his rookie season Rubio never got to the free-throw line 10 times in one game. This season he's done it in three of his past four games. That has allowed Rubio to score consistently even with his shot still inconsistent. The fact that he is able to get to the basket and get to the line even with teams sagging off him is a testament to the quickness Rubio has regained, as is his 15.1-point average over his past seven games.

"It is a sign of his aggressiveness," Adelman said. "He is picking and choosing the right time, when he has a chance to get [to the basket] and get bumped. He is going to get to the line."

Said Rubio: "It's just that we have to be more aggressive. We have to attack more, get to the line. And, maybe, last year, I was a rookie, and they didn't call those fouls. But because we don't have Kevin [Love], who had like 20 attempts a game, we have to get those free throws."

By any measure Rubio's game has ramped up. After not scoring in double figures in his first 19 games back, he has done so in eight of his past nine, including seven straight. He has nine or more assists in seven of nine games and he has even rebounded well of late. Sunday Rubio had his second consecutive game with at least 10 points and five assists, rebounds and steals, becoming the third player in Wolves history to do that and the first since Terrell Brandon in 2001.

But the Wolves struggles have continued even as Rubio has returned to form, which has frustrated him.

"I was talking to my dad [Sunday] night," Rubio said. "And I was like, 'I never lost so many games in a season.' I lost more games in the last month than all my life, I think. I'm not going to get used to it, and I'm never going to get used to it.''

Klomp wrote:Ricky to Shved: "Change your face. Enjoy it!" That needs to be sigged ASAP!

cojayar wrote:I think you are reading too much into this.

Ricky knows what does for an elite european player means to lose again and again. If you do not enjoy the game you will not play well. You must be angry but enjoy. Be positive. Change the face.

Where is the problem? Should he advice him to shot himself? Or to start crying? C'mon.