Reply With Quote
If Minny decides to move him, I'm sure they can do better than whatever the Knicks are peddling.
Knicks Will Again Call Wolves About Rubio
Knicks lose Sessions
By Marc Berman
The Knicks lost out on Bucks point guard Ramon Sessions yesterday, re-igniting Donnie Walsh's interest in the Timberwolves' Ricky Rubio and increasing Walsh's urgency to sign restricted free agents David Lee and Nate Robinson.
Walsh said he will put the heat on next week in trying to sign Lee and Robinson to one-year deals. And he also will inquire again about Rubio, who agreed to play in Spain another two years, prompting Minnesota to ink Sessions to an offer sheet.
"I'm going forward with it," Walsh said of Lee and Robinson. "It's the beginning of September. I'd like to see if we can get something done. We want to keep them, put it that way, and that's up to me. I'll try to see where we can get to as quickly as we can get to."
Walsh's remarks come in response to Lee's agent Mark Bartelstein recently saying that he could not rule out the possibility of Lee being unsigned by the start of training camp Sept. 28 because no contract numbers had been exchanged. Lee is agreeable to a one-year deal.
The last time Walsh inquired about Rubio was right after the draft, but Wolves president David Kahn, once a close associate in Indiana, told Walsh they were keeping him.
"Obviously it went through my mind," Walsh said. "Rubio committed to Spain. Right away David signs Sessions. That might mean Rubio is in play. I'll find that out."
Sessions signed a four-year, $16 million pact that the Bucks likely won't match. According to Sessions' agent, Walsh was on the verge of signing Sessions to a four-year pact in late July but backed off when he learned the 2010 salary cap likely is dropping to the worst-case scenario of $50 million. Walsh's goal this summer was saving cap room for a run at LeBron James.
"I thought it really was going to happen," said Chubby Wells, Sessions' agent. "I really thought we had a deal. Then Donnie finds out the cap will be smaller than anticipated and he pumped the brakes on it and slowed down."
According to Wells, Walsh told him he needed to move one of his players with long-term contract -- likely Jared Jeffries.
"His agent always kept a number that was too much for us," Walsh said. "I watched it, but couldn't do it for the future."
If Minny decides to move him, I'm sure they can do better than whatever the Knicks are peddling.
Rubio's value will double in two years as he grows up and gets better. #1 overall pick in the 2011 draft and Wolves will be beating off the suitors for him.
Danilo Gallinari + S&T Nate Robinson for Ricky Rubio + Bad contract sounds just about right.
This Rubio not coming over thing is actually what the Timberwolves needed. Now they will get to see if he is all hype or legit. Having watched him play in about nine games, I never really understood all the hype.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
