Friday, August 8, 2008

The Next Raul Lopez (but with 2 knees)

With Spain set to seriously challenge Team USA in the Olympics, NBA fans would be wise to keep their eye on this young man, Ricky Rubio, seventeen year-old Spanish phenom. ESPN calls him i) the most talented point guard to ever emerge from Europe, ii) a young Pete Maravich, iii) the most fun European player to watch, and iv) a magnificent defender. He is 6'4,", is fearless with the ball, and has great length and speed. And lest we blow him off as another hyped nobody, let's get some perspective: He STARTED for the competitive Badalona squad at age 17 in Spain's 1st division, arguably the second best league in the world after the NBA. He will be a lottery pick next June, but wait until this "chico" is 21 years old. But for now, let's see how he handles Deron Williams and Chris Paul . . . .

4 comments:

Orlando said...

Isn't this guy in the Jonas Brothers?

Tucker McCann said...

What is the "Jonas Brothers?"

Orlando said...

The band that Ricky Rubio plays in:

www.thejonasbrothers.com

Arnold Babar said...

It'll be interesting to see how this kid does against the Chinese guards. If he doesn't stand out there, I'm writing him off until the London games in 2012.