Life goes on without Ricky Rubio, who appears, judging from his Twitter pictures that show him smiling while he rehabs, ready to move on.

We'll find out if the Wolves are ready to do the same.

Rick Adelman said it's vital the Wolves immediately get over the shock of losing Rubio to that torn ACL and play on without feeling sorry for themselves.

Does it happen just that quick?

"I was hoping it could happen that quick, but after the New Orleans game I begin to wonder, the way we play in that game," he said. "We just had no energy and life."

That's what Rubio gave them as much as anything, along with his underrated defense and offensive creativity.

Getting J.J. Barea back should help.

Adelman said he's hopeful Barea will play tonight in Phoenix, but wasn't certain of that.

Both Adelman and Barea called him a "game-time decision."

He appeared to be moving fairly well at this morning's shoot, which usually means he'll try to play.

But the X factor here is the Wolves have two rare days without games on Tuesday and Wednesday, which would give him three more straight days to try to get that sprained ankle fully healed without perhaps coming back too soon.

Kevin Love, btw, left the US Airways Center this morning with icepacks strapped to his back. He said the back is still sore, but said he'll play and hope Tuesday and Wednesday helps it get better.

One other thing:

Adelman said he needs to play rookie Malcolm Lee more tonight than the five minutes he got Saturday against New Orleans, particularly if Barea doesn't play.

He needs to do so for two reasons: To get Luke Ridnour some rest at point guard and so the Wolves can make a better informed decision about whether they need to acquire another point guard by Thursday's trade deadline.

David Kahn said Saturday there are other way to add a player than a trade, but with other teams looking for point guards as well, there doesn't appear to be a whole lot of options out there, unless you want to lure Stephon Marbury back from China.

Anybody here on the blog up for that?

Aaron Brooks, the Suns' restricted free agent, also is playing in China, but Phoenix is the only team at this point that can sign him for the rest of this season.