This is not normal

Victor Wembanyama moves like he's on a playground. Giannis Antetokounmpo moves like he's master of the universe. Nikola Jokic is hitting 35-foot runners at the buzzer. Basketball!

Good morning. Let’s basketball.

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Goodbye for Now, Ricky

Ricky Rubio announced his retirement from pro basketball. In his message, he speaks briefly of a mental health crisis over the summer and, while keeping it all close to the vest, says he’s getting better. Thank the gods.

Ricky was a total phenomenon and bright spot for a lot of people. The sports blogger generation has some special affinity. Liveblogging the 2008 Olympics starring the Redeem Team and an incredible Spanish squad that featured a very young Ricky. The whole 2009 draft experience. I can put myself right back in 2009 by watching the famous 10-minute pre-NBA Ricky Rubio highlight reel set to “Freebird.” The problem is that once I queue it up I can’t close the tab until I’ve watched the whole thing. It’s a real anti-productivity hack.

We all blogged breathlessly about every hint concerning when Ricky would join the Timberwolves, and watched closely for signs of impending greatness once he started playing. His career played out differently than most of us anticipated — to me, he was Luka before Luka, a fully-formed wunderkind who would instantly be a top-10 player; that didn’t pan out though he did have a really successful run in the Mike Conley vein. All along the way, Rubio was an unadulterated joy to watch, and it seemed like every teammate adored him.

If Ricky has an NBA legacy, let it be this clip. And let the Ricky in the video box guide the real Ricky to brighter days ahead.

Change this face. Be happy. Enjoy.

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Brooklyn Nets Participation Policy

The NBA fined the Nets $100,000 for sitting all those starters against the Nets a couple weeks ago. I’ve been interested in the rest decision primarily as it pertains to friction between Mikal Bridges and the team’s leadership; he is normally a reserved interview, and he was clearly annoyed by the decision to pull him after one quarter and then blame his weird appearance on his personal interest in keeping his ironman streak alive. I’m also interested in the fact that the Nets have looked horrible since that game.