Minnesota Timberwolves: 4 trade deadline ideas featuring Ricky Rubio

The Minnesota Timberwolves had the No. 1 overall selection in the 2020 NBA Draft, but it was somehow arguably not even the biggest Wolves story of the night.

The Wolves made a draft night trade involving the acquisition of Ricky Rubio, who the Wolves originally drafted in 2009 (ahead of Steph Curry, but nobody remembers that, right?).

Though the question of Rubio’s ability to play with D’Angelo Russell lingered, Wolves fans were at least able to find some excitement in the return of one of the most popular personalities in the history of the Timberwolves franchise.

Minnesota Timberwolves: 4 trade deadline ideas featuring Ricky Rubio

Rubio’s return to Minnesota has been less than romantic. The team currently finished the first half with a league-worse 7-29, and Rubio is having the worst season of his career. The Spaniard is averaging a career-low in points per game and his worst shooting percentages since his first go-round with the Wolves.

It was apparent very early in the season that Rubio was incapable of sharing the court with Russell and made it difficult for the coaching staff to play him in late-game situations due to his offensive struggles.

While acknowledging his owns struggles and the need for improvement, Rubio expressed his frustration with the Wolves current situation to the media prior to the All-Star break.

Though Rubio’s comments are more than fair, that’s a pretty damning way to speak about your organization. It’s clear that Rubio is unhappy (as any player in this situation should be). Given that Rubio was someone that Ryan Saunders favored, it is entirely plausible with Saunders now out of the picture that Rubio is shopped in the weeks leading up to the trade deadline.

This article will take a look at four Ricky Rubio trades with varying degrees of likelihood. Looking at different types of trades will hopefully give us an idea of how creative the front office can be with the team’s third-largest contract.