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NBA Rookie Debuts: Noel, Parker, Smart. Rubio Contract Negotations.

Just some notes as the NBA pre-season gets busy.

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It was a quiet day in Timberwolves yesterday, as the team returned from Indiana following their pre-season opener. They are back to practice with the Sixers coming to town on Friday, after which they will have a week before their next game.

The Sixers played last night and beat the Charlotte Hornets, notable because:

  • Nerlens Noel made his long-awaited debut and went for 10 and 9 and 3 blocks in 31 minutes, and
  • Alexey Shved! He came off the bench for 11, 4, and 3. I'll always have a soft spot for Shved.
In other rookie debut news:

  • Jabari Parker went for 14 and 8 in 32 minutes but it took him 15 shots to get there in the Bucks win against the Grizzlies.
  • Jordan Adams only made 1 of 6 shots in his 17 minutes, but picked up 4 steals and 3 assists.
  • Marcus Smart had a nice outing for the Celtics, going for 11 points (4-8) and 6 assists in 24 minutes.
Darren Wolfson had this to say about the Rubio negotiations:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>I&#39;d be very surprised if the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Twolves?src=hash">#Twolves</a> went up again w/ Rubio. I think 4/$48M is the line in the sand. Still can have his rights for 2 years.</p>&mdash; Darren Wolfson (@DarrenWolfson) <a href="https://twitter.com/DarrenWolfson/status/519868788662341632">October 8, 2014</a></blockquote>
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I would be very surprised if Rubio agreed to that. What will be interesting is how willing he is to sign the QO next summer with the promise of being a free agent in the summer of 2016, when the cap should be significantly higher.

Today in History

768: Charlemagne crowned king of the Franks
1192: Richard the Lion Heart leaves Jerusalem 
1290: Last of 16,000 Jews expelled from England by Edward I leaves the country
1701: Yale University chartered
1855: Isaac Singer patents sewing machine motor
1888: Washington Monument opens to public
1962: Uganda becomes independent (from UK)
1974: Bussing riots in Boston 

Today's musical birthday is John Lennon, born in 1940 (d. 1980).

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Thursday. Don't overdo.