I wanna know how Ricky Rubio's ceiling is higher than Rondo's

[GoldMedallist]

Is this about if they are American or not? or white/black?

Rubio can be a high pick, if Rondo was a 20th it was manager's fault, not Ricky.

Was Kwame brown a good first pick?
Was Ginobili a good 57?

Please, don't blame the kid for being white or Rondo's low selection.

[Glo41]

Good post. i like to play devil's advocate definitely but i honestly get annoyed when our american players( Jonny Flynn for example) get overlooked and all the hype goes to a foreigner...And I also think he plays nothing like Stockton or nash but gets the comparison because they are good white guards, he plays like a weaker, bit slower Jason Kidd more than anything

Jason Kidd is exactly what I thought as well. Not a good shooter, slow shot, and the amazing vision. He only lacks the speed and athleticism of a young Jason Kidd really.

[loot]

Jason Kidd is exactly what I thought as well. Not a good shooter, slow shot, and the amazing vision. He only lacks the speed and athleticism of a young Jason Kidd really.

and the body. kidd is an ovedrsized pg. rubio is undersized and will get pushed around. imagine rubio playing back to the basket like kidd or gp

[mrhoopfan]

Ricky Rubio won Defensive player of the year this year in the Spanish ACB league. He's 18. In his first year in the Euroleague at age 16 he averaged almost 4 steals a game in only 18 minutes per game.

He is the most exciting defensive player I have ever seen. Seriously. He had six steals against team USA in the two games they played against them in the Olympics. He stripped Paul a few times, just straight took it from him off the dribble. Chris Paul.

Here was Rubio's stat line from his last game in the ACB.

13 pts, 7 assts, 6 steals.

And 'could' be a better passer? WHHAAT? He's 10 times the passer Rondo is right now..



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12FOZsjWxwk

He's a better passer, shooter and defender than Rondo is RIGHT NOW. That's how he has more ceiling.

Speaking of Olympics, didn't Rubio shoot 28% in those games....

[Glo41]

and the body. kidd is an ovedrsized pg. rubio is undersized and will get pushed around. imagine rubio playing back to the basket like kidd or gp

Good point I forgot. Rubio does look like a pretty tall PG though. He will never be a back to the basket point guard, but I can see him running the break ala Jason Kidd.

[Bush4Ever]

Ricky Rubio won Defensive player of the year this year in the Spanish ACB league. He's 18. In his first year in the Euroleague at age 16 he averaged almost 4 steals a game in only 18 minutes per game.

He is the most exciting defensive player I have ever seen. Seriously. He had six steals against team USA in the two games they played against them in the Olympics. He stripped Paul a few times, just straight took it from him off the dribble. Chris Paul.

Here was Rubio's stat line from his last game in the ACB.

13 pts, 7 assts, 6 steals.

And 'could' be a better passer? WHHAAT? He's 10 times the passer Rondo is right now..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12FOZsjWxwk

He's a better passer, shooter and defender than Rondo is RIGHT NOW. That's how he has more ceiling.

Dude...defensive player in the euroleague. There is a significant period of defensive adjustment for virtually any NBA player, especially international players. I probably should have been a little more clear in my original post. I don't think he will be Nash-like on defense, but rather "average".

Rondo made an all-defensive team in the NBA.

In terms of passing, Rondo averaged 8+ assists per game WHILE only turning the ball over 2.6 times per game. That combination is very hard to find in point guards.

In terms of defense and passing effectiveness, Rondo has done everything Rubio has done...at a higher level (NBA vs. Euros).

I'm more than willing to be proven wrong (I really like watching him play), I'm just being a healthy skeptic.

[mrhoopfan]

Is this about if they are American or not? or white/black?

Rubio can be a high pick, if Rondo was a 20th it was manager's fault, not Ricky.

Was Kwame brown a good first pick?
Was Ginobili a good 57?

Please, don't blame the kid for being white or Rondo's low selection.

Nobody said Kwame was going to be the next Karl malone and although he was #1 pick (worst ever), the hype machine was not on full blast like it is now for this kid

[Jinxed]

and the body. kidd is an ovedrsized pg. rubio is undersized and will get pushed around. imagine rubio playing back to the basket like kidd or gp

He's 6'4 and 18. The kid could be 6'5 by the time he stops growing. How much did Jason Kidd weigh when he was 18? More than 180? Sure he may never have Jason Kidd's build and may never play in the post, but he's not a small point guard, or at least he won't be when he becomes a man.

[loot]

He's 6'4 and 18. The kid could be 6'5 by the time he stops growing. How much did Jason Kidd weigh when he was 18? More than 180? Sure he may never have Jason Kidd's build and may never play in the post, but he's not a small point guard, or at least he won't be when he becomes a man.

he'll never be a player like gp or kidd.

[Jinxed]

Dude...defensive player in the euroleague. There is a significant period of defensive adjustment for virtually any NBA player, especially international players. I probably should have been a little more clear in my original post. I don't think he will be Nash-like on defense, but rather "average".

Rondo made an all-defensive team in the NBA.

In terms of passing, Rondo averaged 8+ assists per game WHILE only turning the ball over 2.6 times per game. That combination is very hard to find in point guards.

In terms of defense and passing effectiveness, Rondo has done everything Rubio has done...at a higher level (NBA vs. Euros).

I'm more than willing to be proven wrong (I really like watching him play), I'm just being a healthy skeptic.

That's cool man. Skepticism is what's needed right now. His hype is unreal, and it will be sad if he doesn't live up to expectations. And it will be interesting to see how Rubio handles NBA defense, where right now if you are a wing player, it's almost as if you aren't even allowed to play D. Rubio is very physical and probably couldn't get away with some of the stuff he does in Europe. And yea, Rondo is a great defender and an efficient offensive player..Rubio is more balls to the wall on both defense and offense. He's high risk. But Rondo's first year in the NBA he had only a 2:1 asst to TO ratio. He's improved dramatically.

Rubio still has 5 years to go before he is as old as Rondo.

[loot]

rubio's footworks isnt good either.

[mrhoopfan]

What makes Rubio that much better than my man Nick Calathes? (scouting report below)

What makes Calathes so effective is in his ability to control the pace of a game. He can play an up-tempo style or run an offense in the half-court and in either fashion he seems to make good decisions. He makes great passes at the right times and to go along with his 6.5 assists a game he makes countless passes that lead to assists - contributing to the team's ball movement.

Calathes' passing ability is far and beyond his greatest skill. He sees the court unlike any other player in the country relative to his size and repeatedly makes difficult passes with either hand, creating easy shots for his teammates. At 6-5, he has great size and therefore can see over the defense - making passes that most point guards in college cannot. His great strength is also a weakness however, as he can get into trouble, attempting unreasonably difficult passes at times, which is why he's averaging 3.3 turnovers a game, which is 20th worst in the country.

Perhaps Calathes' biggest improvement from a year ago is in his shooting efficiency, where his numbers are up across the board. He's making 57% of his shots inside the arc (up from 46%) and 42.3% from 3-point range (up from 36.2%). The biggest reason for this is in his shot selection, as he's forcing the action less and recognizing when he's open and what the defense is giving him more. He's doing a much better job finishing around the basket this season, going from converting just 49% of his shots around the rim last season to a far more impressive 64% this year. This is a big development considering that he's deemed to be severely lacking both strength and athleticism by NBA standards, yet spends quite a bit of time in the paint at the collegiate level.

Calathes plays a huge role for Florida, handling the ball a great deal and having almost their entire offense revolve around him. He could definitely stand to improve his free throw shooting

[GiveItToBurrito]

He's 6'4 and 18. The kid could be 6'5 by the time he stops growing. How much did Jason Kidd weigh when he was 18? More than 180? Sure he may never have Jason Kidd's build and may never play in the post, but he's not a small point guard, or at least he won't be when he becomes a man.

Exactly. Rubio's actually got good, maybe even great size for a point guard, and even though he's not a Brandon Jennings-type athelete, I wouldn't go so far as to call him unathletic. Also, even though his shot still isn't at the level of a Calderon or Nash, I think it can be forgiven since he's still young, since most young players become better shooters.

Basketball IQ and court vision are what separates someone like Lebron James from Andre Igoudala, and Rubio's supposed to have that same special feel for the game. . Rondo's no slouch in that department, but he's not elite or legendary. Rubio's supposed to have a Kidd-like ability to read defenses and passing lanes, and that's something that you can't teach or practice.

[boozehound]

I'm tired of all the hype! The next Stockton, Maravich the next Nash. Those two guys were all accurate shooters !. People on this board talk about how Boston's system fits Rondo perfectly........no, it doesn't. If he was on a team where he could shoot/drive at will(like he can now without KG) then this guy would average 20. I think Rubio will be solid but when we have Americans that are great ball players and we go and throw constant hype on a foreigner, it bugs me. I can't name a European point guard that has been very successful in the NBA.

this is just flat out wrong. Now, I personally think rubio will not be as good as advertised, but to suggest that rondo would/could be a dominant scorer on a team is inaccurate. his major weakness since HS has been his shot. and its not going to improve very much. as long as he has a shaky jumper (and no all star teammates to pass to), the defense can take away his drive and dare him to shoot. He is a great ball handler, passer, excellent rebounder and solid defender, but his weakness always has been his scoring, especially his outside shot.

[noob cake]

Rubio's sense of anticipation is special. His stealing ability makes Paul's look like a joke. His shooting is not as good as Calderon.

The guy is only 18 years old. As most don't know, 6 assist in europe is a godly high number. They don't count assists loosly like the NBA (peremeter pass, dribble twice, pull up jumper; ie how Paul racks up assist with David West)

Please don't compare Rondo to Rubio; Rondo is by no means a bad player or bad point guard (he is great and severely underrated at the draft, but the potential of Rubio is an GOAT type of PG.