So who else is still not over the Rubio thing? Such a tragedy. Worse than the Garnett trade. Worse than Adrian Peterson. The fine people of Minneapolis and St. Paul were starting to galvanize around this kid. While Kevin Love is a sure-fire stud, Rubio made him look all the more better. Furthermore, I think we silently saw by what He hath taken away, that this was secretly Rubio’s team all along. His loss is a truly gut crushing thing not only for the franchise, but for the country of Spain and their Olympic team, which would have competed mightily (and probably still will). And now we are left with sad pictures taken from hospital beds, and the lingering feeling as to how the young man is doing in the ever-warming city of Minneapolis while his beaten and battered team embark on a 2-week long road trip filled with exponentially increasing challenges. And rather than step up for their wounded soldier in Hollywood fashion Saturday, our favorite team came out flat and was defeated, tails between the legs, by Chris Kaman Your Mouth and a slew of players I had never heard of in my life. 

Pity Party at my place tonight. 9 o’clock Wear your Wolves jerseys.

But it’s time to bounce back. Rubio was only 1 man out of 9 in the regular rotation. The Wolves still have a shot as their conference rivals continue to mount losses. Houston was dealt arguably an equally mighty blow when Kyle Lowry fell to a bacterial infection of unknown origins (insert racy punchline). Portland has completely imploded. Denver hasn’t turned things around yet since getting Nene and Gallo back into the lineup. And the Jazz, well, we are better than them with or without Rubio and I stand by it.

Bring on the surging Suns. The Wolves had their chance Saturday to show defeat. With a few more days of rest, let’s see what they can do down in Phoenix against yet another team we should beat. 

Injuries to Rubio or not, just remember we have one of the best NBA coaches in the last 20 years, or ever, behind the helm. Remember that there have been myriad wins this year where someone else other than Rubio willed us to an unexpected victory. Remember, too that aside from the dramatic photo above, that we will see Rubio back in a Wolves uniform a) yet this calendar year, and  b) before the Mayan Apocalypse in late December. Remember this team needs to reestablish its identity on the fly and will need a few games to do so. Remember that D-Will has been playing great ball lately and this team still has the depth to win games. 

The season isn’t over just yet.