Rubio needs a coach with confidence in him, and it's not Thibodeau

When it comes to Ricky Rubio, I remind myself of a large majority of Vikings fans with Teddy Bridgewater: I love the guy as an athlete, but I'm not sure why.

It might have been that moment as a rookie in 2012, before Rubio's knee injury in March. Nikola Pekovic had hit a basket to give the Timberwolves a late victory, and Rubio's absolute joy as he jumped on Pek's thick back made a big impression.

There was none of that "I'm supposed to act like this'' happiness with Rubio. It was spontaneous and 100 percent delight for a teammate's big moment.

My thought was, "This guy is more exuberant for Pek than if he had driven for a winning layup himself.''

I decided then that Rubio was a fantastic teammate. That made me largely a defender of his, even as the Wolves failed to win and he went through dreadful periods of being unable to make open shots or finish drives.

Rubio's six seasons in Minnesota are coming to an end, after a deal was reached to send him to Utah for a first-round draft choice. That wasn't much of a return, although the main reason for the deal was to get Rubio's $14 million salary off the books and use it elsewhere -- starting with his replacement, Jeff Teague.

This was a considerable break for Rubio, no matter what lies ahead with Utah. He needs a coach that embraces his game – assists and steals, seeing teammates and sneaky defense. His game requires exuberance and having the confidence of a coach.

My early impression with Rubio was that his strong instincts on the court were matched with a strong instinct for reading people. It probably took him five minutes to realize that Thibodeau didn't want him as the Wolves point guard.

We kept getting these reports in the Spanish media when Ricky was back home in the offseason about him questioning his future in Minnesota, and often those were dismissed as subject to misinterpretation.

Turns out, those were accurate. Rubio knew right away that he wasn't Thibodeau's guy.

To affirm this, the new boss made Kris Dunn the first draftee, as the No. 5 overall choice in 2016. He was a point guard with a couple of shortcomings:

Dunn was the Rubio equivalent in that he couldn't shoot. He was also the anti-Rubio in that he couldn't dribble.

Am I the only one with the opinion when watching Rubio last season, that when he had his good stretch after the All-Star Game, he was playing with a chip on his shoulder to prove Thibodeau wrong more than with the usual great happiness to be out there on the court?

You can succeed for a few weeks with that as a motivation, but it's not going to work long-term … not for a player who clearly came here from Spain fueled by a joy for playing this game.

Five years ago, Rubio was jumping on Nikola Pekovic's back and filling Target Center with his smile and appreciation for a teammate. This week, Rubio was able to get a coach with no appreciation for his game off his back after a giveaway trade, and hopefully landing in a place where there's a want to go with a need for his point guard skills.