A few hours before the 2021 NBA Draft was under way, general manager Koby Altman and the Cleveland Cavaliers had already begun making moves before they even made their selection of Evan Mobley. Cleveland and the Minnesota Timberwolves agreed to a trade that would send Cavs forward, Taurean Prince, a 2022 second-round pick via the Washington Wizards, and cash considerations to the Wolves in exchange for veteran point guard, Ricky Rubio.
Cleveland drafting Evan Mobley should have come as a shock to virtually nobody, unless you were one of the few that believed Jalen Suggs should have been taken there, or hoped the Cavs would trade back in this year’s draft from there. After taking Mobley and signing Jarrett Allen to a five-year contract, Cleveland has laid the foundation for their frontcourt of the future moving forward.
That being said, there are still some crucial needs Altman and the front office needs to address. One of those needs was a backup point guard. Fortunately, this Minnesota trade has solved that need.
As Cleveland gears up for another year with their exciting young core, Darius Garland is poised to take on the role of the starting point guard once again. As an emerging leader on this Cleveland team, Garland needs to take that next step this upcoming season. Having Rubio in The Land will surely elevate Garland’s game in several ways.
Taking that into consideration, we will examine three distinct ways that Rubio’s role on the Cavs can improve Garland’s play.
Starting off, let’s discuss Rubio’s defensive prowess.
#1: Rubio can help Garland improve his defensive awareness for the Cavs
Cleveland will be getting a solid defender in Ricky Rubio. His defensive IQ has always been a notable strength of his game, and even with him set to be in Year 11 of his career, he’s still a very good defensive player. If Garland can absorb and learn from Rubio’s defensive game, he could definitely improve on that end this season.
Rubio will bring a defensive edge to the guard rotation in Cleveland. During this past season with the Timberwolves, Rubio managed to average 2.9 defensive rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. Additionally, he managed to garner an impressive 2.0 steals per-36 minutes this last season as well.
Meanwhile, throughout his 2020-21 NBA season, Darius Garland averaged 2.0 defensive rebounds per game, along with 1.2 steals. His defensive feel, despite not being the best on-ball defender, did take strides in Year 2 though, and Rubio’s veteran presence could further aid Garland’s development in that realm, too.
Garland is already on track to be a successful guard in this league and taking a step forward defensively would be huge for him. And with Ricky Rubio donning the Wine and Gold this next season, it is inevitable that he will be able to pass along his defensive knowledge to Cleveland’s young guard.
Next up, let’s take a look at Rubio’s offensive capabilities and how they will affect Garland.
#2: How Rubio can help Garland round out his offensive game
If we are to believe the trends from this past year, then it seems likely Darius Garland will continue to develop his offensive game more throughout the upcoming 2021-22 NBA season.
As he builds upon his average of 17.4 points per game from last year in addition to his overall shooting clip at 45.1 percent, and 39.5 percent from three, having Ricky Rubio in Cleveland will provide Garland with a mentor to adapt and learn from.
And that’d be one that has had more success on a personal level than say, Matthew Dellavedova did. Dellavedova was a good rotational playmaker and reportedly did help Garland and Sexton, but Rubio has had a far more impactful career overall.
Coming off of the regular season with Minnesota, Rubio averaged 8.6 points, and although he’s far from the shooter of Garland, he is still a decent scorer that can make things happen in the open floor and with floaters. His craftiness as a driver is something that’s paid off for him too, and perhaps behind the scenes, as Rubio will serve as Garland’s primary backup, he can help Garland round out his approach as a scorer and pick-and-roll operator.
In fact, when it comes to the offensive side of the game, Cleveland’s newest point guard has especially been showing up and showing out in Tokyo this summer. Playing for his home country of Spain in the Olympics, Rubio came away with a stellar 38 points against Team USA.
Granted, Kevin Durant managed to rally the United States to a victory in the end, 95-81. However, Rubio’s performance in that game should not go overlooked. He made a memorable impact, scoring the most points against Team USA in the team’s history.
Although Spain would not advance in the Olympics, Rubio definitely left his mark with his 25.5 points per game. His offensive talent will provide Garland with a bevy of knowledge and expertise to pull from this upcoming season.
Now from there, Rubio’s playmaking abilities and track record should be crucial for Garland as well, clearly.
#3: Rubio can help Garland’s playmaking development for the Cavs
Ricky Rubio’s playmaking will also give Garland an edge to learn from as well. Averaging 6.4 assists per game this past year with the Wolves, Rubio’s facilitating is still very much intact.
Garland’s 6.1 assists per game last season is just as impressive, and if Garland can continue this upward trend of successful playmaking, along with Rubio’s guidance, Cleveland is going to have a high caliber ball handler and facilitator on their hands.
Rubio will likely be leading the Cavaliers bench as the backup point guard behind Darius. Rubio’s consistent playmaking off the bench will provide Cleveland with a much needed edge in their guard rotation. Cleveland needs Darius Garland to take the leap this upcoming season and grow more into his role as the primary playmaker.
But all in all, Ricky Rubio’s presence on the team will allow Garland to do just that under his mentorship.