Spanish actor Ricky Rubio and Cleveland Cavalry An agreement was reached on terminate your contractThe point guard announced his retirement from the NBA after twelve seasons in the most prestigious basketball league on the planet, the ESPN network reported this Thursday.
“I wanted to publish this message for you today because My NBA career ended today“The Spanish playmaker wrote on social network X, formerly known as Twitter.
“If Rubio continues his professional career, this is probably where he started. 14 year old genius: “His hometown is in Spain,” he said. Adrian Wojnarowski One of the best sourced journalists in the North American League.
Last December 20 Shams Charania, Another journalist with very good sources in the NBA assured the portal The Athletic that the Spanish point guard and the Cavaliers are negotiating the departure of the player.
This departure was about the Cavaliers needing to do something. new signatures After the injuries of important players such as Darius Garland or Evan Mobley.
Charania later stated that Rubio is not expected to play again this season and said:There were doubts about whether he would return to competition.
Rubio signed a contract with the Cavaliers in 2022. $18.4 million for three years.
related to 33 yearsThe point guard is receiving a lot of attention and respect from the Cleveland team, where he arrived in 2021 to add seniority and experience to a veteran team. lots of young talent (Darius Garland, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen…).
In December 2021, Anterior cruciate ligament He was going through a great moment of form when he injured his left knee.
It was the same injury he suffered as a rookie with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2012.
After returning to the courts in January 2023Last August, Rubio stopped concentrating on Spain at the Basketball World Cup to take care of his mental health.
Asked this Monday, January 1, EFE in Toronto (Canada) J. B. Bickerstaff, The Cavaliers’ coach spoke about the player’s situation following reports that the Cleveland team was interested in negotiating the Spaniard’s departure.
Bickerstaff responded succinctly:I have no idea“to this question.
Rubio has reached a remarkable point in recent years. maturity, security and inspiration This allowed him to win the 2019 World Cup in China with the Spanish team (he was the tournament MVP) and become the top scorer of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
In the NBA, he did not have a special opportunity with his teams after being selected number one. five of the draft By Minnesota Timberwolves.
He worked for many years on teams with very few targets (Minnesota Timberwolves) and left other teams just when they were starting to look at the top (Utah Jazz and Phoenix Suns) After Rubio was instrumental in combining these projects.
In total, he played 12 seasons in the NBA – not counting this season with the Cavaliers – with averages 10.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game during the regular season.