Pippen Ain't Easy
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Chicago Bulls Trade Deadline: Robin Lopez and Ricky Rubio

By Michael RENE KANOY

Feb 12, 2017; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Jerian Grant (2) defends Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio (9) in the first quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 12, 2017; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Chicago Bulls guard Jerian Grant (2) defends Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio (9) in the first quarter at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /
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Even with the 2017 NBA Draft looming, getting the Chicago Bulls point guard of the future can be now or never with Ricky Rubio. A rookie will take a year or more to come into his own. Rajon Rondo and Rubio on the same team guarantee a fun playoff run for Chicago.

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It may be now or never for getting Rubio on the Bulls. The TImberwolves point guard is currently running an average of 3.8 rebounds, 8.4 assists and a measly 8.9 points per game.

For the past several NBA playoff runs and for every NBA championship, a team’s point guard often spelled the difference between winning a series and moving on to the next round or going home early. The way the Bulls are running their team right now seems like a rudderless man-o-war because no single player has had a steady hold on the point guard position. Why not get Rubio then? The Timberwolves had a strong January showing, winning eight and losing seven before the Zach Lavine injury  at the start of February, the team has a three-win and six-loss February record forcing them to look for help on offense via trades or player signings like Lance Stephenson.

Fred Hoiberg’s free-flowing offense has always been designed as independent of a playmaker because everyone passes the ball and swings it to where movement breaks free a cutter or an open perimeter shooter. But in the NBA playoffs, the Bulls may need a legitimate court general to run the team, calling teammates to run, set up walk-up 3-point shots before the defense sets, and whipping passes to cutters or lobbing the ball at the rim for high percentage scoring. Rubio may not look like much on the stat sheet but when we review the Bulls versus Timberwolves games this year, it wasn’t any Wolves scorer who killed us, it was Rubio probing the defensive line and surgically passing to his troops when they could do the most damage.

Since this week leads up to the NBA trading deadline, it might be a now or never thing to take a long hard look at Rubio, who desperately also wants to play in the NBA post-season.

Jimmy Butler may not cut it as a playoff quality playmaker, distributing the ball, because he hesitates to pass and is better as an off-ball threat. As an on-ball threat most playoff teams will key on him with quick double teaming and blind side coverage.

Rubio should be the perfect foil for opposing teams if Gar Forman does Hoiberg the favor of sending Taj Gibson to Tom Thibodeau and anyone other than Michael Carter-Williams from among the Bulls’ guards as salary matching bodies. Even the venerable and reliable Robin Lopez might be a fair deal for Ricky Rubio if the result will be Bulls scoring from all angles, directed by one of the best pass-first players in the NBA. Hoiberg still has Cristiano Felicio and they can keep Gibson if they wish.

The Bulls don’t even need to worry about Rubio’s lack of consistent outside shooting because he only needs to prime his buddy, Nikola Mirotic. Doug McDermott, Cristiano Felicio and the rest of the Bulls crew would also score at will if Rubio facilitates for Chicago like he does with the Timberwolves. Rubio and Dwayne Wade in the backcourt may even convince Wade to play for the Bulls for the rest of his days knowing that Ricky can run the team even when he sits down to rest and he doesn’t really need to shoot numbers to be happy. Ricky plays to help teammates win.

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Forman and John Paxson’s team right now is built like a European team with NBA-style low post players and scoring guards looking for synergy. If the Bulls buy out Rondo by March, Rubio looks like the perfect replacement as the glue guy. hopefully, no bridges were burned by GarPax and Rondo and they could have the former Celtic NBA championship team veteran as the second unit playmaker while Ricky gets the starters humming.

Considering that Forman actually recruits players who beat his team, look no further than Rubio, who also allows the Bulls to keep their investment in fellow Spaniard teammate, Mirotic. To make the run to the playoffs count and to possibly steal a series, the team might risk some of their young recruits getting Rubio as their man than get a draft lottery prospect and groom him for 82 games next year before he delivers.

Just watch the video of their last game with the Timberwolves and consider how lethal Rubio is as playmaker for a run and gun team.

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