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Timberwolves Rumors: Wolves still shopping Ricky Rubio

By Jonah Sprinkel

Dec 6, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio (9) dribbles in the first quarter against the San Antonio Spurs at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 6, 2016; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio (9) dribbles in the first quarter against the San Antonio Spurs at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /
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The latest Timberwolves rumor once again includes Ricky Rubio, as the Wolves are apparently still shopping their starting point guard.

On Tuesday afternoon, a “Woj bomb” rippled throughout the Timberwolves universe, and it once again centered around sixth-year guard Ricky Rubio.

For those not familiar with what a “Woj bomb” is, Urban Dictionary defines it as, “A breaking report made by prominent NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports that comes out of nowhere to have a huge impact on the landscape of the NBA.”

While a Rubio trade (which, of course, has yet to happen) does not affect the NBA at large, it does affect Timberwolves fans.

Reported here,  the details are somewhat new and maybe even a bit surprising.

First, Shabazz Muhammad is being paired with Rubio in “multiple offers.” Second, the Timberwolves organization is looking for a “bridge guard” to come in and start for the team until Thibodeau decides that rookie Kris Dunn is ready for starting duties.

Let’s take a moment to digest all of this.

  1. This would signal a big chemistry change, the remaining four starters have only had Rubio as the lead guard in their NBA careers. It would appear as though Thibodeau has decided to use the rest of the year to learn, rather than win.
  2. Another sign that points to a learning year is that Shabazz might be on the move as well. The Wolves bench is bad at best, and Shabazz leads bench scorers with 7.8 points per game.
  3. All of this points to the idea that the Timberwolves won’t attempt a run at the playoffs. Though the team is only three games back from the eighth seed in the Western Conference, trading the starting point guard and leading bench scorer does not generally improve any team.

Earlier in the year, it was reported that the Timberwolves and Kings had progressed in trade talks regarding Ricky Rubio. Tuesday, Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the two teams have not had talks that have progressed to this point. As of now, it is unknown who the suitors for Spanish veteran are.

It should be noted that if the Timberwolves are indeed fielding offers, it would seem to be the perfect time due to Rubio’s excellent play of late.

Over the Wolves last four games, Rubio is averaging 11.3 points on 34.3 percent shooting, 4.3 rebounds, 14 assists, and 3.3 steals. For a brief time, Rubio has proven what an excellent distributor, offensive director, defender, and leader he can be, though we all know his shooting still needs improvement.

The trade deadline is February 23rd. Anything could happen between now and then — that’s nearly five weeks of basketball, after all. So, as Wolves fans, we’ll just have to wait and see what Thibodeau has planned for this team.

Next: Timberwolves Notes: Karl-Anthony Towns On TrueHoop Podcast

It should be an interesting stretch of the season, to say the least.