Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio. (Photo : Getty Images)
Ricky Rubio had allegedly given the Minnesota Timberwolves a deadline to qualify in the playoffs next season or else he will move on and join another team that will be able to give him the opportunity to compete in the postseason.
ESPN indicated that the 25-year-old Spanish point guard, who will turn 26 in October before the start of the new season, "is hoping the new era under Tom Thibodeau brings changes and a much-expected ticket to the NBA playoffs" as the coming season may perhaps be his final one in Minnesota if the Wolves will not advance to the playoffs.
"When I arrived to Minnesota, my hope was to break the seven years' streak without (a) presence in (the) playoffs," Rubio told a local Spanish radio outlet. "I still have that hope, but it's very tough mentally when year after year that goal is not met."
Rubio then said that next season is going to be "crucial" for him as he will already be on his sixth season without a playoffs appearance. He thinks six years is a "long time" for an NBA player not to participate in the postseason and so he is considering to join other teams "that can get to the playoffs and win in the Finals" if his plans do not push through.
The fifth overall pick of the 2009 NBA Draft just signed a four-year, $56 million contract extension with the Wolves last summer.
Meanwhile, Dime Magazine noted that the 58-year-old Thibodeau can make significant changes and improvements to the young club in the 2016-2017 season, "but it remains to be seen whether their fortunes will turn for the better".
Minnesota had produced two consecutive NBA Rookie of the Year winners in Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns, the 2014 and 2015 top picks respectively, and so expectations are high as both players have already passed their rookie seasons.
As for Rubio, he is still considered a young gun if compared to the players of the older teams of the league but is definitely one of the seniors in the current crop of Wolves. Thus, much of Minnesota's success in the coming season will be found on his play and his ability to lead the team's young core especially in the crucial stretches of the season.
