Ricky Rubio didn’t see Chris Paul deal coming that sent him to OKC. He ended up back in Minnesota and is playing his best basketball of the season as he makes his first trip to Phoenix since trade.

Ricky Rubio has always believed he’s improved over the course of a season.

Completely putting that Chris Paul trade he wasn’t expecting behind him has helped with that progression this season.

“It’s been a trend of my career as well in the second half of the season to play better,” he said. “With everything that had happened, especially with the trade and all this stuff, I was kind of lost in the beginning, but now I’ve found myself again.”      

Averaging 12.6 points, 7.3 assists and shooting 40.7% from 3 (22-of-54) over the last 14 games, Rubio is playing his best basketball of the season going into Thursday’s game against his former team.

“I feel like it just clicked one time, he just stopped worrying about all the BS in his head,” said T-Wolves center Karl-Anthony Towns about Rubio, who is averaging a career-low 8.5 points and 6.7 assists this season.

This will be Rubio’s first game in Phoenix since the offseason trade that sent him, Kelly Oubre Jr., Jalen Lecque, Ty Jerome and a future first-round pick to Oklahoma City for Paul and Abdel Nader.

Rubio signed a three-year, $51-million deal with Suns during the summer of 2019.

“I told him if there is one person I trust more than anyone on this team, it’s him,” Towns continued. “And he always comes through. He doesn’t have to score to be as effective as he is. It’s great when he’s been effective like he is now, shooting the ball the way he is and stuff, but I just told him we have full confidence in him that he’s going to figure it out.” 

Rubio faced the Suns during this 14-game stretch as he finished with just six points on 2-of-8 shooting in an 118-99 loss in Minneapolis. Since that game, Rubio has averaged 14 points on 52.4% shooting (7-of-19 from 3) and 8.8 assists to 2.4 turnovers.

“Consistent minutes and consistent lineup,” said Rubio, who averaged a career-high 13 points to go along with 8.8 assists in his first and only year with the Suns last season. “In better shape.”

While Phoenix has greatly benefitted from the addition of Paul, Rubio has been a calming force for the T-Wolves during their trying season filled with injuries, the firing of head coach Ryan Saunders, Towns having a bout with COVID-19 and Malik Beasley receiving a 12-game suspension without pay after pleading guilty to a felony charge. 

“There’s a lot to learn from a guy like Ricky, who has been around 10-plus years,” said T-Wolves forward Jake Layman. “For us, just how to be a pro and come in every single day and be a professional and come to work with the right attitude. Leadership wise, I think that comes very natural for Ricky, especially when it comes to grabbing guys one-on-one and talking to them about certain things. So that’s great to have.” 

Gaining more confidence has helped Rubio as well as he is finding chemistry with new coach Chris Finch.

“He trust me out there on the court,” Rubio said. “I called some plays that he actually was going to call right away or plays that are working and we run it again.”

Finch said he’s always wanted to coach Rubio as he first saw him play at 16. 

“He’s been great for me,” Finch said. “We talk in the floor. He knows exactly what we’re trying to do. He can manage a game. He can play many different styles. I’ve been impressed.”

The first-year head coach has also been pleasantly surprised by Rubio’s defensive play. 

“It’s really solid. Just a smart player, ” Finch added. 

Finch has appreciated Rubio’s impact on the younger players like 2020 top overall pick Anthony Edwards and noted the longstanding relationship Rubio has with Towns.

Playing his first two seasons in Minnesota with Rubio, Towns, the top pick in the 2015 draft out of Kentucky, definitely has Rubio’s back.

“Ricky is just so good, that he doesn’t have to think the way he was thinking before,” Towns said. “He’s so good that once he touches the basketball, he knows exactly what to do. He was just having one of those slumps where it was just not going in for him. Things were just not working out well.  I think no preseason, no training camp. It’s kind of, the flow was kind of off and he finally found it. He found himself in the game.”

Towns concluded by saying, “As long as he keeps popping him back for 3, I’m going to keep passing him the ball.”

Rubio’s contributions aside, Minnesota still has the NBA’s worst record at 9-31. Coming off a 137-121 road loss to the defending NBA champion Los Angele Lakers, the T-Wolves will now face the red-hot Suns, winners of 18 of their last 22 games. 

“It’s a full-time job just trying to contain their backcourt,” Finch said. “Chris Paul controls the pace and the rhythm in which they play. Devin (Booker) can go off at any time for 15 in a row. We saw that the last time.”

Booker erupted for a season-high 43 points in Phoenix’s win in Minnesota last month as he scored 21 in the third quarter.

“We’re just going to have to try to come up with a scheme to slow those two guys down,” Finch continued. “It’s not about slowing Chris Paul down. It’s about just trying to disrupt his rhythm, but that’s really difficult.”

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at [email protected] or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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