Having sat out the entire season thus far, besides a short 2-minute spurt last weekend in the ACB, this obviously wasn’t the best time to evaluate Ricky Rubio’s progress. Regardless, there were a couple of things to take away from watching him play (briefly) against Rome and in practice the following day.
-His impact extends far beyond his ability to score:
We always knew this, but watching him play with only one hand (in practice it was almost painful to watch him shoot two-handed layups, air-ball mid-range jumpers and brick free throws) only amplified this point. Rubio got his hands on every ball even remotely in his area in the game we saw the moment he stepped out on the court—causing deflections and turnovers on a couple of occasions. His knack for getting in the passing lanes is nothing short of amazing, and he’s an absolute nuisance playing defense on the ball.
In addition, he was able to display his terrific court vision repeatedly, as he is simply unable to score with his right hand being in the shape it’s currently in. He was able to beat Brandon Jennings off the dribble badly on two separate occasions, and repeatedly delivered incredibly creative passes to teammates that surprised even them based on the way they reacted. They apparently either didn’t understand his brilliance or just aren’t used to being fed that way. A play at the end of the first half did a great job demonstrating his outstanding instincts—as he corralled a rebound with about two seconds remaining, and immediately whipped a full-court outlet pass to a streaking teammate for an easy layup just as time expired.
-He’s a natural born leader, and extremely likable on top of that
The moment Rubio came into the game, he immediately began directing traffic and instructing them where to go. In practice, he quietly demonstrates to players close to twice his age where they should be on the floor in a certain set or drill. During shoot-around, he jokes around in English with the foreigners, and in Spanish with the local players. As they are going through a certain drill—the team runs until Coach Alonso claps, at which point the players must begin to sprint—Rubio shows his playful side by clapping himself mid-stride, which the players must have seen before, as no one fell for it. He has a special quality about him, there is no doubt about it, and it’s pretty obvious that he’s extremely well-liked by his teammates. The fact that he’s even playing right now is a testament to how much he wants to help his team win.
