There hasn’t been a peep out of Ricky Rubio in months. Is the basketball legend retiring? Will he return to his boyhood club of Joventut Badalona? What about FC Barcelona? Or does he seek to quietly slip away? Emmet Ryan on the mystery surrounding the beloved Spanish star’s future.
It’s wild to think that this happened 18 years ago this summer. That was one of many moments where a young Ricky Rubio announced himself to the basketball world. Whether in a Joventut Badalona or FC Barcelona in Europe, a Minnesota Timberwolves, Utah Jazz, or Cleveland Cavaliers jersey in the NBA, or, most famously, a Spain jersey across the world, he has wowed us for a long time. Is this the end of the road or will there yet be one more chapter?
It’s been a while
A long tenured big name coming back to Europe from the NBA was always bound to draw headlines. Ricky Rubio was no different to the norm in that respect. While the self-imposed delay on the announcement was respected, we’ll get back to that, the anticipation remained.
To the surprise of nobody, he rejoined FC Barcelona. The side where he had won the Euroleague title all the way back in 2010. His first game back in basketball though was in a Spain jersey. A home international defeat to Latvia wasn’t the ideal comeback but nobody cared. Ricky Rubio was back on a basketball court.
Since being left out of the Spain roster for the Olympic Qualifying Tournament, there has been hardly a peep from him. Save for showing up for Victor Claver’s retirement do, he has basically been off the radar. His deal with the Blaugrana completed, there only seem two logical choices. Either Rubio is going to retire or he’ll have one last run with Joventut Badalona.
He has earned his privacy
Just from what he has done in the sport alone, especially in a Spain jersey, Ricky Rubio has earned the right to keep us all waiting. That he has come back to basketball at all after what he has been through was more than enough for us.
I’ve written about how writing about Ricky helped me through my own trauma over the past while. What I didn’t expect was just how much his privacy would be respected at large. It’s not that I don’t respect my fellow journalists, but there are many of us. We don’t all have the same approach and care, yet Rubio has been able to keep no profile, let alone a low one.
Rubio has been able to stay completely out of sight all summer, save for the aforementioned retirement of Claver. With all ACB teams bar Real Madrid having already started pre-season, it’s frankly impressive that he has been able to keep his own close counsel so long.
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About the logical option if he plays
Of the many Spanish sides that have reported for training camp are Joventut Badalona. Ricky Rubio made his name there alongside Rudy Fernandez, who of course retired at the Olympics. With the club at the end of the Barcelona metro line, playing in the same stadium as the Dream Team did in 1992, he was part of a wonderful period.
There he won the Copa del Rey, Eurochallenge, and Eurocup, before making the short journey to FCBarcelona. It’s the obvious place for him to finish his career, should he decide it’s not over yet.
The one thing is, Badalona haven’t even hinted at announcing him. They have made plenty of player announcements over the summer. Then there was the jersey launch for this season. Throughout it all, what seemed the likely place for him to land had nothing to say about a potential return.
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The Marc Gasol/Tim Duncan route
If ever a player was to not worry about any fanfare around their retirement announcement, it’s Ricky Rubio. Tim Duncan, you might recall, announced his NBA retirement quietly in July of 2016. Had he chosen to, he could have enjoyed a curtain call like the fun one Kobe Bryant did the same year. They just had different approaches to it all.
Closer to home, Marc Gasol rejoined Girona after finishing up in the NBA. A full half season had gone by without him suiting up before formally announcing he was retiring as a player. As a complete aside, the investment and work Gasol has put in to resurrect Girona is truly commendable.
Ricky Rubio doesn’t need to rush his decision. He certainly didn’t when he left the NBA. He’s not working to basketball’s calendar, he’s bending it to his own will. Good for him. If he feels like coming back during the season, he’ll likely be welcomed in Palau Municipal d’Esports with open arms. If he doesn’t, well he can announce his retirement any way he so chooses. Who knows, maybe he even opts for 3×3 like DeMarcus Cousins? Whatever the choice, we’ll have to keep waiting. Rubio works to his own schedule now. In life, that’s a goal we should all strive for.
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