Drooling Over Ricky Rubio

Pardon me if this seems out of the blue, but as teams like the Thunder and the Wizards plumb depths impossible, fans are getting into draft spirit. It's all fun and facetiousness at this point, though you hear a lot of names. Actually, you hear a few names repeatedly. At the top of that list sits Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio.

Rubio has been on everyone's breath for a few years now, and his awesome showing in the Olympics gold medal game in August only bolstered his stateside reputation. Until Derrick Rose last June, a guard had not gone No. 1 this decade -- the only other top picked guard in the past 25 years is Allen Iverson. Still, Rubio has fans from New York to Sacramento and all points in between in dry heaves.

There are just two little things, though.

Rubio doesn't have to make himself eligible for the draft this year. International players between the age of 19 and 22 can choose to sit out. Tiago Splitter did this for three years running. Nicolas Batum did it for one year. The central thrust seems to be projected draft slot -- Batum pulled out in '07 because he didn't have a guarantee to go as high as he liked -- but the player could really pick any reason.

For example, let's say Washington gets the No. 1 choice. And let's say Rubio is the no-brainer No. 1 pick. And let's say Rubio decides he doesn't want to play for the Wizards, because he doesn't want to sit behind Gilbert Arenas for a few years or smell Andray Blatche. All Rubio has to do is pull out of the draft. Because he is playing professional basketball in Europe, the problems domestic collegiate stars would face -- they can't hire an agent without giving up their NCAA eligibility doesn't exist. Rubio has an agent, and it won't hurt his ability to earn next season in Spain if he pulls out of the NBA draft at any point. If, say, B.J. Mullens hires an agent and decides he doesn't like the team that drafted him, Mullens is screwed: if he pulls out, he's not going back to Ohio State.

The second problem with dreams of Rubio: the kid hasn't played a single minute of basketball this season. He had wrist surgery in October, and is expected back soon. I've seen nothing indicating his return to DKV Joventut's lineup is imminent.

This matters because of previously mentioned central reason international players stay out of the draft at age 19: if Rubio's injury limits his ability to sew up top spot consideration, you could find him waiting until '10. It's all a guessing game at this point, which is why it makes little sense to beg for Rubio when there's a chance he won't even make himself available next June.