The Minnesota Timberwolves are still exploring for avenues to trade point guard Ricky Rubio, whom many NBA analyst considers the odd-man out in a franchise poised to go all out with their youth revolution this season.
According to veteran NBA scribe Ric Bucher, he was told by a league source that the T-Wolves are determined to move on from the Spanish point guard and hand over the reins to a crop of talented younger guards like Tyrus Jones and Zach Lavine.
Via ProBasketball Talk NBC Sports:
"I'm hearing that the Minnesota Timberwolves are actually look at potentially moving off of Rubio at this point. They've seen enough, and they do not believe that he is the future, in spite of the fact that he's only 24. Now, they've tested the trade waters."
"I'm hearing that they're quiet right now, but that they could return to looking to see what they could get for Rubio once the season begins and some things shake out for some other teams, because they don't have any specific trade partners at the moment."
Rubio has carved out a career as one of the best passing guard in the league, averaging 8.2 assists over four seasons. However, the Spaniard's offensive game remains a work in progress with his jump shot still the weakest part of his skills-set.
Rubio has a career FG clip of 35 percent and 25 percent from the three-point line. He enjoyed a career year in long distance sniping last season after shooting 31.4 percent from deep, though it's still well below the average three-point shooting percentages for a point guard.
With regards to his potential destination, the New York Knicks were reported interested in trading for Rubio, but unfortunately they don't have available players to be used as trade package right now.
One potential trade scenario that appears quite intriguing is Rubio playing for the Portland Trail Blazers. While the Blazers locked in Damian Lillard to a lucrative long-term deal, team's brain trust sees him as more of high scoring off-guard than a natural playmaker. Rubio, although offensively challenged, could play well alongside Lillard, being a past-first point guard that he's and an above average perimeter defender.
According to Rick Bonnell of Charlotte Observer, these two teams had a discussion centered on a potential blockbuster deal before their talks eventually collapsed. Still, trade talks between parties could be revived, especially if the Wolves run out of playoff contention in the West.