Sports

Getting the party started: Rubio, Williams prep for Rising Stars game tonight

Wolves rookies kick off All-Star weekend festivities

By Jerry Zgoda

February 24, 2012 at 9:53PM

Kevin Love (42), Ricky Rubio (9) and Derrick Williams (7) are the Wolves participants in All-Star weekend festivities. (Associated Press - Ap/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Timberwolves rookies Ricky Rubio and Derrick Williams went through "practices" with their respective Team Shaq and Team Chuck squads today in Orlando in preparation for tonight's Rising Stars game featuring the league's top rookies and sophomores.

And they talked about facing each other, the game's top pick Blake Griffin and other stuff.

You'll find Ricky talking about Blake and his Rookie of the Year battle with Cleveland's Kyrie Irving right here.

And Williams talks about sparing Ricky no mercy if he gets the chance to dunk on him tonight and just what he thinks of a suggestion Team Shaq coach Steve Kerr, a fellow Arizona Wildcat, has for Williams regarding tomorrow night's slam-dunk contest. You'll find that here.

Rubio made what the NBA is calling a Guinness World Record for most shots made from behind the backboard in a minute.

OK, so maybe it's not a world record quite like breaking the four-mile mile, but...

Rubio set it by making 18 in a minute, including 15 in a row.

Rubio also made three half-court shots while Team Shaq was just messing around.

"Hey, that's my specialty," teammate Kevin Love said.

So what about this notion Rubio can't shoot?

"Well, maybe you just have to make it harder for him," Love said.

Love was looking much fresher today when players selected for Sunday night's actual All Star Game met the media -- well, everybody except for Kobe Bryant, who purportedly was ill -- at an Orlando hotel than he did after Wednesday's last-second victory over Utah.

Love said he got to bed about 8 p.m. last night and "just relax."

"I was so exhausted," Love said. "I wasn't able to sleep the few days prior before that and that day I wasn't able to get my nap in. I finally able to get some rest and now I feel refreshed. I even woke up and worked out this morning. I'm still going to go as hard as I can (in Sunday's game). I want to put on a good showing."

Love says he likes his chances in Saturday's three-point contest a little less now than he did before the NBA made Kevin Durant a late addition to the field.

"When they added him, I said this might be tougher than I thought," Love said. "But I was working on my three-pointer this morning and I'm confident."