What the Ricky Rubio trade means for the Utah Jazz

Hours before the 2017 NBA free agency period began, the Utah Jazz made a major move to trade for Ricky Rubio. What will the effects be for all parties involved?

For the second straight week, the Utah Jazz made an unexpected splash in NBA waters by pulling off a trade. This time, the deal sent former Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio to Utah in exchange for the 2018 first round pick owed to the Jazz by the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Given that the pick is lottery-protected and will at the very best convey as a 15th overall selection, the Jazz aren’t giving up any important assets in return, much like the deal that netted them Donovan Mitchell on draft night.

Utah had a motivation to make the trade when they did, as their $16 million in 2016-17 cap space would have a disappeared at midnight on June 1 when free agency began. Rubio’s contract, an additional two years at around $14.5 million per, fits perfectly into that void.

The money spent also doesn’t present a huge issue for this summer, as most of the signings the Jazz will be making would be through returning players, with the exception of a few minimum deals to fill out the bottom of the roster.

We’ll get into other implications regarding the Jazz’s personnel shortly, but the immediate takeaway from the deal should be the recognition of the end of George Hill‘s time in a Jazz uniform. He’ll have to look elsewhere in search of a job, although the market is certainly not bare, with clubs like Minnesota or the San Antonio Spurs in need of a floor general.

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As for the player the Jazz are receiving, Rubio has been one of the league’s most uniquely skilled lead guards for a number of years now. Coming to the NBA at age 21 from Spain, he crafted a decorated international career long before his arrival in the United States.

On the positive side, he is one of the best passers in the league, putting up a career-high 9.1 assists per game last season to go with his career average of 8.5 dimes. However, this does not mean Rubio excessively dominates the ball in the halfcourt, posting a 17.4 usage rate, which ranks quite low for a point guard.

According to Synergy, he ranks in the 69th percentile on pick-and-rolls including passes, which along with his penchant for ball movement, should make him a good fit in the Jazz offense.

At 6’4″, he’s also long and skilled enough to execute Utah’s defensive strategies. Rubio is a pesky on-ball defender, leading the league in steal rate three times in his career and putting up 1.7 swipes per game last year.

With the Jazz, who represent a much more talented defensive grouping of teammates than he had in Minnesota, Rubio will be able to be more aggressive knowing he has help behind him protecting the paint in Rudy Gobert.

Beyond harassing ball-handlers for steals, he also ranks in the 68th percentile or better league-wide in defending spot-ups, handoffs, and isolation attempts, per Synergy.

ESPN’s Real Plus-Minus metric grades Rubio out as the NBA’s ninth-best point guard, although Hill did place three spots ahead of him. As a longtime advanced stats darling, the value Rubio brings to his new team won’t as much be seen in highlight plays as it will over the long-term results.

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On the negative side though, Rubio’s weaknesses have been well-documented for years now.

A career 31.5 percent three-point shooter, opponents have never had to respect his game from outside, which has hamstrung his effectiveness operating from the perimeter.

His shot has improved recently, if not from behind the arc then from midrange, where he set career highs last year in the 10-16 and 16-20 foot ranges.

On spot-ups, he knocked down just 38.1 percent of his attempts, according to Synergy.

Rubio also isn’t much of a finisher around the hoop, shooting just 48 percent from inside of three feet and 33 percent on floaters and runners. When penetrating, he’ll exhaust all opportunities to create for a teammates before he puts up a shot of his own.

It’s unavoidable that Rubio will be a draw on the Jazz’s offensive workings in a way that Hill never was. However, the Jazz should have the ability to mitigate this effect as much as possible by surrounding him with shooters and keeping the ball moving.

One of these such shooters could be Joe Ingles, a restricted free agent that should command sizable offers from other teams. As it would be difficult financially to bring back the trio of Hill, Ingles and Hayward, it certainly looks like Jazz management have made the decision to go all in on the latter two.

Of course, the greater implication of this trade will come in how it affects free agent superstar  Gordon Hayward. Hill and Hayward were said to be close last season, but reports from Jody Genessy of the Deseret News suggest that Rubio would be an adequate “Plan B” for the sought-after forward.

Personal relationships aside, the move for Rubio should be seen as a positive one for Hayward, as it guarantees the Jazz retain a starting-caliber point guard for next season, rather than facing market uncertainty with Hill.

At 26 years old, Rubio also fits the Jazz’s organizational timeline better than the 31-year-old Hill would have, and can be viewed as a potential building block rather than an ancillary piece.

Next: NBA Trade Grades - Timberwolves send Ricky Rubio to Jazz

Like most moves the Jazz have made recently, the trade for Ricky Rubio has its plusses and minuses, but it will ultimately be viewed in the context of what decision Hayward makes.