There’s no better time to trade a player than when he’s playing well, and that’s what the Timberwolves are trying to do with Ricky Rubio, according to The Vertical.
Adrian Wojnarowski’s sources tell him that Minnesota is trying to package Rubio and swingman Shabazz Muhammad to “several teams around the league.” In return, the Wolves want a guard who can start in the short term while first-round rookie Kris Dunn develops. The report doesn’t suggest that Minnesota wants anything else for Rubio and Muhammad, although that would be hard to imagine.
Wojnarowski says the Wolves have talked with the Sacramento Kings, but those conversations haven’t led to anything serious. Rubio still has $29 million remaining on his contract after this season (a fair price).
Rubio has been on fire of late, posting four straight double-digit assist games while cutting down on his turnovers. He’s averaging 14 assists in his last four games – three of them wins for the Wolves – while committing 13 turnovers.
“He’s great. He’s just amazing right now,” Karl-Anthony Towns said, via Timberwolves.com. “For him to do what he is doing right now is amazing. He’s such a catalyst to our team and such a big part of the team.”
Overall, he’s seventh in the NBA in assists, trailing only James Harden, Russell Westbrook, John Wall, Chris Paul, LeBron James and Jeff Teague.
The NBA trade deadline is Feb. 23.
