"¡¿Queeeé?! So what if I'm a diiiiick..."
Well hey ya'll! Here's my first proper blog in a long while. It's been bothering me for quite a while, basically ever since it happened. Pretty much, Ricky Rubio (and/or his agent, if he has one) is kiiiiind of an asshole. The NBA needs to stipulate that if a foreign player enters into the draft and, well, gets drafted, he HAS TO join the team. The Minnesota Timberwolves did just that, taking Mr. Rubio fifth overall. FIFTH! Even in such a weak draft, that's a very valuable pick, my friends. Despite the weakness, it's the principle of the whole thing that irks me. Imagine the team you root for has been struggling for God knows how many seasons. You finally get a decent draft pick with the potential of grabbing a young point guard whose skills have been compared to many of the great PGs of eras past. Hell, this guy has the possibility of turning the team around! How exciting! *Fast-forward a couple weeks* Wait. What the hell is this? NOW Rubio's deciding that he's gonna go play some more Euroball, possibly till 2011? What a dick! Here's Rubio's thought process on this one:
"Aw, sí, me gusta el NBA! Me gustan los point guards como Juan Stockton y Denís Juanson y "Bob" Cousí! Hey, ma y pa! Yo quiero join el NBA! Yo quiero, yo quiero, yo quieroooooo!"
*Fast-forward until after draft*
"Aaaaaactually, yo no quiero join el NBA. Voy a SCREW los T'Wolves y stay with Joventut. ¡Arriba!"
Honestly, that really makes me angry, and the I don't even like the Wolves. I'm just thinking what my reaction would be if he was drafted by my team. And being a basketball fan in general, it just...well, grinds my gears. What an effing joke this kid is. You know, before you enter into an NBA draft, wouldn't you think you'd be definitely sure that you want to play there? Especially after all the hype we gave him over here, which he undoubtedly knew about, how dare he?!
Now, I know there's rules and stuff. He's not coming from college, he's got an actual contract with Joventut that has to be honored or whatever--the whole buyout clause and whatnot, that I, admittedly, don't completely understand and am too lazy to look in the Sports Illustrated that sitting next to me that explains it. Either way, someone screwed up royally. Here's what the parties involved should know for next time:
A) Don't enter the NBA draft unless you're sure you're ready for the commitment. Yes, it's a commitment. "Comitmento" or however you say it in Spanish. Shut up. I know I'm a Spanish major, but we haven't even had a full week of school and it's Friday. Back off.
B) Don't enter the NBA draft unless you're sure that your contract allows you to.
C) Don't draft a player (especially in the first round) unless you're sure you're able to buyout his existing contract.
D) Understand that your decisions affect a vast amount of dedicated fans. Don't be a DICK and casually decide you're gonna wait 1, 2, 3 more years (maybe never) until you finish adolescence in your homeland. Or wait until you get more money out of the deal. Which is being even MORE of a dick. Which is what Rubio's doing to try and increase his reputation, etc.
E) If you're a European team, make sure you advise your player correctly is he's considering entering an NBA draft. Don't advise as follows, "Hey, yeah go check it out. See how high you go and how much money you'd probably get. No big deal." NO. Sorry. It's not like that. You're making a COMMITMENT to possible teammates, GM, President, owner, coach, and, maybe most importantly, a fanbase that got our shitty team from 2006-07 and has had to suffer ever since.
F) If you're the NBA (i.e. the Commish), don't just assume that any and every player from overseas will automatically want to sign with an NBA team just because it's an NBA team. Work out a deal with every European/Asian team that stipulates if any player enters the draft, a) that team must let that player go, b) that player must follow through (Meaning he can't just decide that the money offered isn't going to cut it and decide to return to Europe to play more ball for a team that, according to these new rules, agreed to let him go. It kind of reminds me of the newish Gary Payton Rule back in...2004? 2005? We waived Payton, who went to Miami so we could get 'Toine back and then, because of some clause in his contract, he decided not to sign with Miami and we signed him again a couple days later. Yeah, unfair.), and c) the NBA team must work with the European/Asian team to come to a consensus about a buyout. If one is not arrived at, the player cannot just go back to playing with his old team--he gave up that right upon entrance into the draft. Instead, the only option is a trade of the player to another NBA team.
Sure, it's a rusty plan, and I'm sure there's loopholes and stuff I'm forgetting. But, it's something definitely worth considering, wouldn't you think? Imagine if this becomes a trend! David Stern's desire to globalize the game will be destroyed because NBA teams will have less and less faith in drafting a foreign player in the future. It could get ridiculous.
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the inaugural blog for the season. Celtics are opening their preseason on October 7--less than a month away! Until then, expect my reaction(s) to the two U2 concerts I'm going to next Sunday and Monday. If this video is anything to go by, it should be the best thing any human has ever seen. (Seriously. Watch it. Even if you're indifferent. It's just cool.)
Bye!
