As the reality of the Rubio news begins to set in around the league and in Minnesota, SBN’s Timberwolves blog, Canis Hoopus, asks the operative question:
T’Wolves Fans Defend Kahn, Rubio Says Minnesota Too Risky
The Alpha and Omega in any discussion about Rubio and the Wolves is to answer the following question: What else was David Kahn supposed to have done? Had he passed on Rubio with not one but two lottery picks, he would have been ripped for not selecting the BPA. Had he selected Rubio and traded him to the Knicks, he would have been ripped for exhibiting nepotism with his former boss (to say nothing of the lopsided nature of any Knicks-based deal that could be offered). Had he picked Rubio and traded him for the rumored Houston package, he would have been ripped for not getting maximum value out of a hot commodity. Had he made an under-the-table deal with Joventut, he would have been ripped for giving the Wolves and their fans Joe Smith 2.0. On this particular issue, Kahn is to his critics as Barack Obama is to Glenn Beck: He's going to lose no matter what he does so why worry about the criticism?
The number one thing that can be taken away from any criticism of Kahn and his handling of the Rubio situation is that he is getting ripped for a) doing exactly what he said he would do from day 1, and b) traveling the most reasonable route he, and his team, could possibly traverse along La Route Rubio. Again: What else would critics have Kahn do?
As for Rubio’s role in all of this, the Associated Press emerged from Barcelona with a report this morning:
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) -- Ricky Rubio prefers to keep playing basketball in Spain because joining the Minnesota Timberwolves is a risky move that would complicate his life.
The 19-year-old point guard was sent from DKV Joventut to Barcelona on Tuesday after the Catalan club paid Rubio’s $5 million buyout.
On the subject of assessing Kahn and his role with the Timberwolves, I’ll defer to actual Timberwolves fans like the folks over at Canis Hoopus. If they’re happy with his performance throughout this ordeal and elsewhere in this summer’s basketball operations, then perhaps that’s all that matters.
I will say this, however: What’s used as a throwaway introductory paragraph to a 250-word AP report is actually the most critical aspect in all of this. Rubio didn’t want to be in Minnesota, and he still doesn’t. Kahn either didn’t realize as much, or he didn’t care, and on draft night he ignored that detail. Drafting Rubio was a daring move on draft night--and made Kahn and the Timberwolves look good--but to anyone that had been paying attention, it was also a huge risk.
Rubio wanted to play in a major market. Because of his buyout constraints--which called for him to pay all but $500,000 of his $5 million buyout from his own pocket--you could argue that he needed to be in a big market. Drafting Rubio and penciling him in as the Timberwolves starter for the upcoming season was a pipe dream, and to pretend it was any different, or to allow David Kahn to pretend different, is equally naive.
David Kahn did all he could to resolve the Rubio situation and get him to Minnesota--this is true. But trying (and failing) to solve a problem that never had to be created in the first place is not exactly a winning achievement for someone in his first few months on the job. T’Wolves fans may be fine with David Kahn, but the team may have been better off with Stephen Curry.
See More:
