Yes, he is more "special" because he has another excellent choice. Or rather, he isn't more special, his situation is more special. As an ardent supporter of capitalism, I thought that you, of all people, wouldn't vilify a player for exercising the leverage he possesses in order to get the best opportunity for himself.
I support his right to do what he thinks is best, and to make all the money he can. However, he'll make a ton of money in the NBA, no matter where he goes, and he's acting like a prima donna right now. By the way, I'm sure all those other foreign players I mentioned could have stayed with their home teams and made a boatload of money, too. But they all wanted to play in the NBA, so they went where they were drafted--and they've all had a great deal of success.
How is he acting like a prima donna? Do you believe a businessman who says he won't do a deal because he can a better deal elsewhere is acting like a prima donna? No, they all couldn't. Most players can't make a comparable amount of money in other countries, because basketball is not big in most nations. In addition, Rubio has to pay millions of dollars to play in the NBA (due to the cost of the buyout on his contract in Spain). When you factor that in, Rubio stands to make much more money in Spain right now than he does in the NBA. That wasn't true of the other players you list.
Let's break this down: The most that Minny can give him in salary over the next two years is 6783480 (120% of his salary slot). Taxes on that are about 35%. Cash into his pocket (without counting agent fees, player's association dues, etc.) is $4,409,262. His buyout is 5.75M Euros (since it is now past June 30, and it escalated). In today's exchange rate, that is $8,078,179. MIN can pay 500k of that, leaving Rubio on the hook for $7,578,179. When he's going to make $4.4M over the next two years. Let's assume he's good enough to get a 3rd year option picked up. Now his 3-year salary will be $10,542,960, which using again the 35% tax bracket means that he will make $6,852,942. So his net NBA paycheck over three years? He has to pay $700,000 for the privilege of playing for the Timberwolves. What if he is just a whiny, sucky Euro PG? Probably will get the Ike Diogu treatment--maybe a pity vet min contract to see if something can be salvaged...now he's 22, played in the NBA for 4 years, and has not yet paid off his buyout. OR He stays in Barcelona another two years, makes about 700k or so. Then he comes to Minnesota (when he's still only 20), where he is GUARANTEED a profit of that two year salary of 4.4M, third year option (even Morrison got picked up for that) total of 6.5M. For those of you in the "whiny little bitch" camp, please figure out what you're talking about, lose the hypocrisy, and try actually thinking about an opinion rather than feeling. I mean, seriously, in the span of a week people on here have decided that Rubio's a "whiny little bitch" because he doesn't want to pay 700K over the next 3 years out of his own pocket after receiving his max salary, and that Rudy should be shipped off b/c he's "whining" about playing time. Just, please, think--then post. I won't even ask you to learn the game. Just...think.
First of all, Rudy didn't come right away. He waited a year to lessen the impact on having to pay his buyout. I applaud Rubio. His situation is a lot different than others. Play in Europe for two more season and finish your contract, come to the NBA and make 4 mill a year. Or pay around 3 million on your buyout to play for a shitty team with a completely mismatched roster. Doesn't make any sense what so ever. I would love to have Ricky. I still have a feeling we haven't heard the end of it here in PDX.
There you go. You nailed it. Rubio is staying in Spain because he doesn't want to play for a lousy team. It's not the money, it's Minnesota! This is exactly why a lot of NBA fans are pissed at him. He doesn't like the cards he was dealt, so he's going to take his ball and go home.
There is no possible way you can seriously think you can discount having to pay 700k minimum to play in the NBA, when everyone else is making millions. Come on, Shooter.
Come on, Brian. Rubio knew exactly how much he would have to pay to come to the NBA this year, and yet he declared for the draft anyway. If paying the money was such a huge problem for him, why did make himself available for the draft and show up in New York with a new suit on?
Had he been drafted #2, as expected, he'd have made significantly more money. He might actually have made a profit on a NBA contract, rather than having to pay money for the right to play in the NBA for 3 years.
"As expected"? Did someone promise him he was going to be drafted at #2? I doubt it, since it didn't happen. He came to New York not knowing where he would go, but hoping for the best, like everybody else. I saw mocks that had him going around 7 or 8, and he should have known that was very possible. I repeat: It wasn't the money, it was Minnesota!
What are you talking about? I said expectation, not promise. Most people felt he'd go top-two or top-three. How is this at all relevant? Of course it was possible. You were asking why he'd come to the draft at all, when he knew about the buy out. The reason was that if he had been picked earlier, which many people thought he would be, it would have been worth his while, financially, to enter the NBA. That didn't happen, so it wasn't worth his while. Fairly simple.
He made himself available probably b/c he knew he'd be a top pick. That his slot floor would be guaranteed for the 3yr/10M contract (although to be fair, he probably thought he was going #2, and get traded somewhere. Big difference b/w a #2 contract and a #5 contract.) Of course he knew how much he'd have to pay. And he knew that if the situation wasn't completely ideal, he'd go back to Spain for two years and not have to pay a dime. Everyone in the basketball-conscious world knew that--it was leaked to press, it was talked about with scouts, fans were talking about it. Minnesota isn't completely ideal. They're a bad team, city that's off the international radar, and a team that drafted another franchise PG right after him. They can't help one of those things, but they sure could've helped two of the others, and didn't. They rolled the dice. Personally, I think they took him to trade and are just waiting for value coming back to increase. But this isn't a "he either comes to MIN or he's a whiny little bitch" situation. If he did come to Minnesota, he'd be a teenager making a very foolish business decision.
Look at it this way, guys. If New York had drafted Rubio at #8, would he have come to the NBA this year? You bet he would. It wasn't the money, it was Minnesota.
Look, I'm not saying that being Minnesota didn't play a part in it. It totally did. But the reason he has the leverage is that he has a contract. Sure, maybe if he went to NYC, was given the starting job and told LBJ was probably getting signed with their 40M in cap room next year, then it probably would've been different. And maybe if he comes to Portland and gets to play with Rudy Roy LMA and Oden it would be different. and maybe if he gets a renegotiated buyout it would be different. I don't think that if NYK traded up to get him and then traded for Ramon Sessions and re-signed Nate Robinson that he would come, though. I don't think that if we traded for him and said Blake was our starting PG for the next 3 years that he would pay for that. To completely discount the fact that he's losing more than his entire rookie contract if he comes over in the next two years? Don't see how you can logically do that.
New York has much greater exposure and endorsement opportunities. Whether or not "not liking Minnesota" factored in (it may well have), there's pretty much no question to me that money had a ton to do with it. In addition, since when is where you live a trivial matter that only prima donnas care about? It's a major factor for many people when weighing an employment opportunity.
You really think that a prospect as flashy and hyped as Rubio wouldn't have easily made up all the lost salary of dropping from #5 to #8 in endorsements playing in NY rather then Minnesota? I think it's a lock that he'd have been a featured star in D'Antoni's offense and would have made much more then his salary in endorsements. He would have been able to pay off his buyout in a year (or so). STOMP
