Trade Rumors are heating up with Ricky Rubio, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Kevin Love leading the pack.
Courtesy of the Minnesota Timberwolves
Ricky Rubio
- Current Season Statistics: 6.6 ppg, 6.4 apg, 3.6 rbg
- Current Team Record: 5-13, 14th place in the Western Conference
- Possible Landing Spots: San Antonio Spurs, Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns
In 2009, the Timberwolves made a trade with the Wizards to acquire the fifth pick of the draft. They would use this pick to take a chance on a player from Spain who could pass and play sound defense but didn’t quite posses the shooting touch -Ricky Rubio has proved to be this player averaging 10.0 points, 8.2 assists, and 4.3 rebounds a game over his career in the NBA. He has been a solid point guard but has not been a player able to lead his team into playoff contention, having not posted a winning season since taking the helm at point guard. With the drafting of young star Kris Dunn this summer, the Timberwolves need to move in a new direction away from Rubio and give Dunn the opportunity to develop into a great point guard. I believe Dunn puts Minnesota in the best position to win, and Rubio could be a great asset to many NBA teams with his wonderful passing abilities.
There are those who may begin to speculate as to why the hell the Spurs would trade for a foreign passing point guard when they have Tony Parker. My answer to those who have such a burning question is that Parker is 34 years of age, meaning hes not going to be in the NBA forever, and I believe Ricky Rubio could be able to fill his void when he does retire. Greg Popovich is one of the best coaches in NBA history who has the ability to harness Rubio’s full potential and maybe even teach him how to shoot at a higher percentage. Although this is unlikely, a deal for Rubio would arguably include Patty Mills along with some draft picks.
Some would probably think that a Rubio trade to the Kings would force the team to give up DeMarcus Cousins in order to satisfy the Timberwolves front office. If you could envision such a trade taking place then quite frankly you’re out of your frigging mind. Cousins will definitely not be involved in this trade unless the Wolves want to give up young studs like Andrew Wiggins or Karl-Anthony Towns, (which they won’t). A trade between the Wolves and Kings does not have to be a blockbuster deal, but it could end up benefiting both clubs as this would free up more cap space for the Wolves and maybe help the Kings’ pitch to resign Cousins. Darren Collison, Ben McLemore, and a first round draft choice could be very hard for the Timberwolves to turn down in exchange for Rubio, especially considering how high the Kings usually draft.
There is no question that the Suns are going to be deep in trade talks this year before the February 23rd trade deadline. With tons of young talent up and down the roster, the Suns should be able to bring some talent which could really help this team to turnaround its recent season woes and put them back into the playoffs in the upcoming years. Players like Devin Booker and T.J. Warren are beginning to emerge into NBA stars, and with some proven veteran talent being brought in to surround them, who knows what this team could do. Fact of the matter is currently the Suns are talented yet awful and unable to win games. They need to make some power moves, and sooner rather than later.
More trade Rumor mentions …
Kevin Love
It would make a lot of sense for the Phoenix Suns to go out and acquire a veteran big man like Kevin Love, who is playing his best basketball since joining the Cavaliers, but in return they would have to be willing to give up a lot. It would more than likely take Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Knight, and Marquese Chriss or Dragan Bender and a first round pick for the Cavs to even begin discussing trading Love. This would be huge for a struggling organization like the Suns, and may even help the Cavaliers in the long run, but the question is would both teams pull the trigger.
LaMarcus Aldridge
There have been various talks about the big man not being fully satisfied in San Antonio. If the Suns were able to somehow pull off a deal that would land them a veteran of this caliber, it could really benefit them. This is the type of player they need to target as they can use their young talent to bait front offices into giving them a star player. Aldridge comes with a high price tag, but to a team with no proven player in their young front-court, the Suns should be willing to give the Spurs an offer they can’t refuse.
DeMarcus Cousins
In a topic I already touched on in a previous article, DeMarcus Cousins is another huge name the Suns should highly target. Cousins could help this team tremendously by playing alongside Kentucky alum Eric Bledsoe, Devin Booker, and the emerging talent T.J. Warren. This trade could lead to a potent starting lineup and bring back to life a Suns team similar to the Steve Nash and Amar’e Stoudemire era. Such a trade would probably cost Alex Len, Brandon Knight, and a lot of draft picks, but if it’s doable, the Suns better be willing to take the deal.
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