ESP/USA - Rubio in the clouds

MINNEAPOLIS (NBA) - At long last, Ricky Rubio wore an NBA uniform and played in a game in the United States when his Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Milwaukee Bucks in a pre-season game over the weekend.

The Spanish national team point guard, drafted by Minnesota after his last season (2008-09) with DKV Joventut, spent the following two years with Barcelona.

The NBA lockout delayed the start of this, his rookie campaign, but the 21-year-old Rubio finally ran onto the court and played in a game on Saturday.

Looking back at his team's 117-96 win over the Bucks, Rubio said: "Even if it wasn't an NBA regular season game, it was my first game in the U.S. and of course, I was a little bit nervous.

"When you come to the court, you forget about everything. You just want to play. You just want to do what you know how to do and that's it."

The skill that Minnesota fans have been most eager to see is Rubio's ability to make terrific passes.

Twice he threw alley-oop passes to Derrick Williams, which led to chants of "Olé, olé, olé" in the crowd, and he also had a dish on a fast-break to Luke Ridnour that had everyone in the Target Center buzzing.

Rubio, who had to leave the game in the second quarter after turning his ankle, finished with six points, seven assists, six rebounds and two steals.

He was in the clouds after the contest.

"Great," he said.

"It's amazing."

FIBA