Sactown Royalty, a Sacramento Kings community

A source with knowledge of the situation said Rubio was visited in Los Angeles today by the Oklahoma City Thunder, who have the No. 3 pick in the June 25 draft. This matters mostly because Rubio's visit in Sacramento this week came with unspoken terms, an understanding of sorts that a Rubio promise on the Kings' part could have stopped his American tour with just one concert. But that clearly never happened, and certainly not only because Rubio was unable to get on the floor Thursday when he fell ill.

One of the more interesting tidbits of information coming out of the pre-draft workouts the last two days in Oakland is word that the agent for Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio is suddenly amenable to participating in interviews and individuals workouts with a select number of teams - the Memphis Grizzlies, Oklahoma City Thunder and Kings. Sources told me that, at this point, Rubio's agent, Dan Fegan, is limiting the visits to the teams with draft picks 2-4.

There has been speculation in the Sacramento media that the Kings might prefer Rubio over Griffin. The thinking goes that they have a terrible point guard (Beno Udrih) and an up-and-coming big man (Jason Thompson). The problem with that thinking? The Kings aren't stupid. Griffin is the best player in the draft and is a big upgrade over Thompson. They might need Rubio more, but they won't pass on Griffin at No. 1.

Geoff Petrie recently returned from Europe where he had a chance to watch point guards Ricky Rubio and Brandon Jennings as well as other international prospects. He is scheduled to head back across the pond to Spain (Barcelona and Madrid) next week to watch Rubio¹s DKV Joventut team play in the Spanish ACB League Playoffs. Upon Geoff’s return to Sacramento, we will begin our in-person workouts at the Practice Facility around May 21.

Sometimes I have no idea how certain players are deemed to be "Top 5" NBA prospects these days. Case in point, the Spaniard PG Ricky Rubio, widely considered the second best prospect in the upcoming NBA draft.

Now there are rumors that 18-year-old Spanish point guard Ricky Rubio, the top European prospect should he choose to enter the NBA draft, could be moved for cash to a wealthier European club because current employer DKV Joventut of Spain is in trouble financially.

Two insiders have shot down the rumors, suggesting that Rubio will remain with Joventut for the rest of the year. For NBA fans, here is the real question: Does the recession in European basketball increase the chances that Rubio will enter the draft to cash in on a multiyear NBA rookie contract assuring him $3 million next season?