SB Nation Minnesota - Timberwolves Vs. Lakers: Both Ricky Rubio And Kevin Love Injured As Minnesota Loses

Ricky Rubio's Torn ACL Continues Bad Run Of Season-Ending Injuries In Minnesota

2012-03-10T20:23:39Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves suffered a huge loss on Saturday afternoon when it was deemed the Ricky Rubio injury that occurred during Friday night's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers was indeed a torn ACL. It was everyone's worst fear as it effectively ends Rubio's NBA season ... and likely the possibility of him playing for Spain in the 2012 London Olympics, too.

Rubio's rookie season in the NBA ended with the 21-year-old Spaniard averaging 10.6 points, 8.2 assists and 2.2 steals per game while exceeding the expectations of those who thought his transition to the American-style of basketball might take some time. Those numbers are certainly impressive, especially for a rookie, and will be very difficult to replace.

Unfortunately it seems that the state of Minnesota might be snake-bitten, at least as of late, when it comes to season-ending injuries regarding their best players.

Al Jefferson suffered the same injury when he was the centerpiece of the Wolves in 2009, Adrian Peterson ripped his knee to shreds late in the Minnesota Vikings season, Minnesota Twins standouts Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau have been dealing with the effects of injuries for the past couple of seasons and Trevor Mbakwe's torn ACL in November leaves everyone wondering what the Minnesota Golden Gophers might have been this season.

Those are all major players on Minnesota's top teams, of course, but the Wolves in particular seem to be struck particularly hard each season when it comes to their young prospects being bit by the injury bug:

2005's first round pick, Rashad McCants, underwent microfracture knee surgery that kept him out of the lineup for quite some time.
Randy Foye suffered a knee injury that was slow to heal, limiting him to just half of a season during his second year in the NBA.
Corey Brewer suffered a torn ACL in his sophomore season, ending what looked like it could have been a strong second season with the Wolves.
Kevin Love, of course, broke a bone in his right hand that caused him to miss a couple of months with an injury.

Hopefully this trend goes away as it's making it harder and harder to hold out hope for the state's top players.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. You can also check out professional basketball news from around the league over at SB Nation's NBA page.

Ricky Rubio Injury: Timberwolves Rookie Out For Season With Torn ACL, According To Report

2012-03-10T19:28:33Z

The worst fears of the Minnesota Timberwolves have been grimly confirmed: The Ricky Rubio injury has been deemed to be a torn ACL knee ligament, according to Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune.

Rehabilitation time for such an injury usually is six to nine months, which means Rubio also likely will miss playing for Spain in the London Summer Olympics that begin in July.

The dazzling rookie, who helped lead the Timberwolves into playoff contention with a 21-20 record just a season after the team went 17-65, suffered the injury to in Minnesota's 105-102 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday night. Rubio exited the game after his left knee appeared to buckle, and he now leaves the Timberwolves short a star player who helped make the team one of the most exciting to watch in the NBA.

Rubio ends his rookie season averaging 10.6 points on 35.7 % shooting along with 8.2 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 steals.

The Timberwolves will start life after Rubio tonight when they take on the New Orleans Hornets at the Target Center at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. You can also check out professional basketball news from around the league over at SB Nation's NBA page.

Ricky Rubio Injury: Torn ACL Would Add To Grim History Of Hurt Timberwolves Rookies

2012-03-10T17:04:37Z

There isn't anything concrete as of Saturday morning regarding the Ricky Rubio injury, but Minnesota Timberwolves fans have always been conditioned to fear the worst. It didn't help on Friday night, either, when reports indicated Rubio may have suffered a torn ACL.

Rubio is scheduled for an MRI on Saturday to get an official diagnosis on the injury, but the Star Tribune's Jerry Zgoda wrote on his blog that serious injury wouldn't be a surprise. Instead it would only add to a long list of issues that Wolves rookies have had over the past several year.

If it is something that serious, he'd join a list of Wolves' first-round draft picks since 2005 who all sustained significant injuries early in their careers: 2005 pick Rashad McCants (microfracture knee surgery), Randy Foye (kneecap stress fracture), Corey Brewer (torn ACL ), Kevin Love (broken hand) and now perhaps Rubio.

That's obviously the worst possible scenario, but it seems Wolves rookies are predestined for a serious injury. Hopefully Rubio can buck that trend.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. You can also check out professional basketball news from around the league over at SB Nation's NBA page.

Ricky Rubio Injury: Torn ACL Feared For Minnesota Timberwolves Rookie

2012-03-10T06:11:19Z

A torn ACL is one of the worst possible injuries for a basketball player to sustain considering that it's one of the few that can end a player's season no matter when it occurs. Unfortunately for fans of the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Ricky Rubio injury that occurred during Friday night's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers could end up being a torn ACL.

It's obviously pure speculation until an MRI --scheduled for sometime Saturday -- takes place, but the initial fears are that a torn ACL could have happened in the waning seconds of Friday night's loss. There aren't a lot of details to go on as of now, but Yahoo! Sports' Adrian Wojnarowski reports the anterior cruciate ligament may be the problem.

Minnesota Timberwolves rookie point guard Ricky Rubio will have an MRI on his left knee Saturday morning amid fears he tore his anterior cruciate ligament, a league source told Yahoo! Sports.

"Possible ACL," the source briefed on Rubio's condition said. "We'll know more after the MRI. ... There's a lot of worry right now."

Let's wait for the MRI to take place before anyone writes off the rest of the rookie's season, but .... oof.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. You can also check out professional basketball news from around the league over at SB Nation's NBA page.

Ricky Rubio Injury: MRI On Hurt Knee Is Scheduled For Saturday

2012-03-10T05:57:19Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves lost on Friday night to the Los Angeles Lakers, but it wasn't a terrible one considering Kevin Love was held out due to a back injury. The worst part of the game, instead, came in the fourth quarter when a Ricky Rubio injury forced the Wolves point guard out of action with 16 seconds left to play.

There wasn't any sort of initial diagnosis of course, but the word that did come out onFriday night weren't especially promising.

Don't know if there's anything to read into this but...Adelman made a rare trip into training room postgame, emerged quickly looking glum
— Jerry Zgoda(@JerryZgoda) March 10, 2012

And then, a bit later, the player himself posted that he's scheduled for an MRI on Saturday.

Tough loss tonight. Im gonna do a MRI tomorrow to see how is my knee. Thank you for ur support I really appreciate it.
— Ricky Rubio (@rickyrubio9) March 10, 2012

Hopefully everything turns out okay, but news like this is never fun to deal with -- especially with a player so promising.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. You can also check out professional basketball news from around the league over at SB Nation's NBA page.

Ricky Rubio Injury Video Shows Knee Buckle During Loss To Lakers

2012-03-10T05:34:47Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves suffered a loss on Friday night to the Los Angeles Lakers while playing without an injured Kevin Love, but the news gets worse for Wolves. The Ricky Rubio injury that happened in the fourth quarter of the game could keep the team's star point guard out of action.

Rubio was attempting to close out and defend Kobe Bryant, but as he planted, his left knee buckled awkwardly and he fell backward onto the court. It wasn't a sight that Wolves fans are going to want to watch over and over again, to be sure.

In case anyone was out on Friday night and somehow missed the Wolves game, however, our friend CJ Fogler posted a video of the injury over at Sports Grid. It doesn't look horrendous, but until a diagnosis becomes public, seeing him unable to comfortably walk on it after testing the knee isn't what anyone wanted to see.

It seems as though the injury occurs before any contact between Rubio and Bryant occurs, but it's tough to be sure with the camera angles FSN provided. Hopefully he's better on Saturday and this portion of Timberwolves history is put behind everyone.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. You can also check out professional basketball news from around the league over at SB Nation's NBA page.

Timberwolves Vs. Lakers: Minnesota Loses, 105-102

2012-03-10T04:15:19Z

The Minnesota Timberwolves had no answers for Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum, who powered the Los Angeles Lakers to a 105-102 win on Friday night.

Kobe scored 34 points, and Bynum had 26 points and 10 rebounds to help the Lakers out of a slump.

Derrick Williams and Nikola Pekovic each had a double-double for the Timberwolves. Williams had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Pekovic had 25 points and 13 boards in the loss.

Especially heartbreaking for the Timberwolves is that they had a chance to win the game with 16 second left on the clock. Pau Gasol, the subject of many NBA trade rumors lately, blocked Williams' drive to the basket. Williams and the home crowd thought there should have been a call, but one never came.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. For more on the LA Lakers, head over to Silver Screen and Roll. Follow the drama as the NBA trade deadline gets closer at SB Nation's NBA hub.

Kevin Love Injury: Minnesota Forward Not In Starting Lineup, 'Doubtful' For Lakers Game

2012-03-10T01:04:35Z

Kevin Love was replaced by Derrick Williams in the starting lineup Friday night for the Minnesota Timberwolves tilt with the Los Angeles Lakers because of back spasms, according to Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press.

Kevin Love is doubtful tonight for #Twolves because of back spasms. Williams will start
— Jon Krawczynski (@APkrawczynski) March 10, 2012

The Timberwolves are looking for their sixth consecutive home win and first win over the Lakers since 2007. Kevin Love has been on a tear in the last three games, averaging 36.7 points and 14.3 rebounds over the last three games--all wins for Minnesota.

Minnesota is 21-19 and just a game behind the Houston Rockets for the eight seed in the Western Conference. Los Angeles is 23-15, but is coming off back-to-back losses to Detroit and Washington.

For more on the Minnesota Timberwolves, check out Canis Hoopus. For more on the LA Lakers, head over to Silver Screen and Roll.