Cuts » nal stage, so the repercussions could linger longest

Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, we pose a question to a rotating panel of ESPN fantasy basketball experts to gauge their thoughts on a hot topic. Todays contributors are ESPN Fantasys John Cregan, Kyle Soppe and Joe Kaiser.Throughout his first five NBA seasons, Ricky Rubio was all but a shoo-in for at least 10 PPG, 8 APG and 2 SPG. 11 games into his tenure with new head coach Tom Thibodeau, he is averaging career lows: 6.5 PPG, 6.4 APG, 1.5 SPG. Are his days as a viable fantasy player in standard leagues over or is this just a bump in the road?John Cregan: Even at his best, Rubio has always been a unique case. His lack of confidence in his shot has severely undermined his fantasy value. The bulk of his production comes from only two categories: steals and assists. Last season? -- his best season to date -- Rubio was able to climb into the top 40 on the Player Rater by making his outside shooting less of a liability. He posted a career high .529 TS%. He tied his career high in 3-pointers per game (0.8).Normally, a drop-off like Rubios would suggest a regression in his shooting. But his dramatic 2016-17 drop-off is across the board ... and its volume-based. Hes playing only about one minute less per game, but hes logging a career low 12.6% usage rate. Its the usage rate that concerns me, because if Rubio doesnt have possession, he cant generate assists. And without elite-level assists, he becomes waiver-wire material.Is it his early-season elbow injury? Is it a lack of familiarity with Tom Thibodeaus system? Is Rubio feeling the heat from rookie (and some would say PG of the future) Kris Dunn? Is he hurt by the trade rumors?Id wager all of the above. Rubios been hurt and slow to adjust to Thibodeau. Hes always been streaky, and now hes playing with a lack of confidence. And because the Timberwolves are struggling as a whole, Rubio is sitting a little more than he used to.I still think Rubio bounces back. Maybe not as a top-40 player, but top 70 is still within reach.Kyle Soppe: Rubios development has been underwhelming in a major way since he dazzled at the 2008 Olympics, and this season has represented even a further step backward. Im not as optimistic as I once was, but lets not go overboard and write him off as a fantasy-relevant player. First of all ... the man is 26 years old. Hes been on our radar for a while, but he still has time.OK, now on to some metrics. The Wolves are averaging 0.6 more possessions per game this season than last, so while the pace of play isnt elite, it is actually ahead of where it stood last year. As a card-holding member of the Rubio fan club, there is one trend that Im banking on regressing and allowing Rubio to produce viable fantasy numbers in 2017. His usage was never high, but it has fallen three points in the early going this season. Now, that could be intentional, but when you realize that both he and Kris Dunn are in the bottom 10 in usage among point guards this season, it seems more like a weird stat than a sustainable trend.Rubio still cant really shoot, and thats a problem, but I see no reason why he cant approach similar per-minute production this season as he has had in years past. Hes a man with a very particular set of skills, and if youre hurting for assists and steals, Rubio is a nice buy-low player at this point in the season.Joe Kaiser: Rubio is a career 36.8 percent shooter, which is remarkably bad considering how many games hes played in, but as mentioned, hes always been a viable fantasy option due to his high assist and steals numbers. What I see right now is that hes struggling shooting more than ever (33 percent) and has lost his confidence, taking a career-low 5.2 shots per game. That, more than age or minutes or anything more worrisome, is the reason why his scoring numbers are down.Thibodeau likes to play his starters big minutes, and with the rookie Dunn struggling just as badly on the offensive end, I suspect that Rubio could average 31-32 minutes a game by the time the season is over. His numbers will return to normal Rubio levels as soon as his shot starts to fall a little more often and his confidence builds back up. Frank Robinson Jersey . Ancelotti says Ronaldo has recovered from a hamstring injury but "but he doesnt feel comfortable yet so we wont risk him." Madrid is third in the Spanish league, six points behind leader Barcelona, going into Saturdays game against Valladolid. Mike Clevinger Jersey . Schenn scored the game-winning goal and added two assists to lead the Philadelphia Flyers to a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Tuesday. https://www.cheapindiansonline.com/1388u-mike-freeman-jersey-indians.html . 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RIO DE JANEIRO -- U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte apologized Friday for his behavior surrounding an incident at a Rio de Janeiro gas station, saying he should have been more careful and candid about how he described what happened after a night of partying with his teammates.But he didnt explain why he embellished details of an encounter with armed security guards and called it a robbery, and why he omitted to say that he and three teammates had vandalized a gas station restroom.Regardless of the behavior of anyone else that night, I should have been much more responsible in how I handled myself and for that am sorry, Lochte said in a lengthy post on his Instagram account. This was a situation that could and should have been avoided. I accept responsibility for my role in this happening and have learned some valuable lessons.Whatever they were, for now, hes keeping them to himself.The situation raises questions about the future for Lochte, who is planning to take time off from swimming but wants to return to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Usually known for his party boy image and love of the limelight, he now is facing a line of nervous sponsors, the possibility of legal charges in Brazil and sanctions from USA Swimming and the International Olympic Committee.The robbery flap deeply hurt Brazilians, who were eager to prove they could get street crime under control and host a safe Olympics. And it overshadowed the efforts of U.S. Olympians, who have dominated the medal count. Swimmers alone piled up 16 golds and 33 medals total at the games.Known for his outsized personality and regular `bro behavior, Lochte has always been about having fun. This is the guy who gleefully admitted eating McDonalds three times a day while winning four medals at the 2008 Beijing Games. For Rio, he dyed his dark hair white, not realizing the pools chlorine would turn it light green.His memorable props -- diamond grills on his teeth on the medal podium, crazily colored high-tops, sunglasses bearing his favorite made-up expression of Jeah! -- and easygoing, goofy nature has made him a popular and relatable star with the public and his teammates.I think that is why I do so many different things with the hair, the grills, the crazy shoes, he said in Rio, Its just my personality coming out there.Lochtes success led to his own 2013 reality TV show called What Would Ryan Lochte Do? It had a short run and left some viewers with the impression that its star was nothing more than a good-looking dim bulb. Still, lines for his autograph sessions at meets routinely stretch longer than anyone elses.As hard as he plays, Lochte works hard, too. His 12 Olympic medals are second only to Michael Phelps among U.S. male Olympians.This time Lochte was only a small part of the show. He finished fifth in his only individual event and swam on the victorious 4x200-meter freestyle relay. Instead, the biggest memory of the 32-year-old swimmer in Rio will be the grainy security video of him and teammates Gunnar Bentz, Jack Conger and Jimmy Feigen exiting the gas station restroom and sitting on the ground, some with hands up.Like other pro swimmers, Lochte is reliant on sponsors to foot his bills so he can focus on year-round training and travel to meets without having to hold a regular job.His sponsors, including Speedo, Ralph Lauren andd airweave premium bedding, have been in no hurry to cut ties with him, though have said they are monitoring the situation.ddddddddddddhe incident feeds a lot of American cliches of the bad-boy athlete, and while it was relatively minor, it is unsavory, says Thomas Ordahl, chief strategy officer at the brand consulting firm Landor.Ordahl believes its probably a good idea for companies to hold off on making decisions until the issue surrounding the dispute is sorted out. But he suspects that eventually, sponsors will probably drop Lochte.The truth is that there are enough celebrities to be attached to without bringing that kind of baggage with you, said Robert Passikoff, president and founder of the research firm Brand Keys.USA Swimming is expected to convene its executive board to discuss likely punishment, as it did when Michael Phelps was arrested for a second DUI two years ago. Technically, the four could be fined, suspended or expelled. In the Phelps case, the board announced a week after the arrest that it was suspending the sports biggest star for six months, banning him from competing in the 2015 world championships and taking away six months of his funding stipend.For Phelps, it was his third strike.This is Lochtes first major gaffe, and whatever sanctions the national governing body passes down could have little effect on the professional swimmer. Hes already said he plans to take the first extensive break of his career following the Olympics and move from North Carolina to California. A suspension could keep him out of next years world championships -- often bereft of big stars following an Olympic year -- and the Arena Pro Swim Series, a five-meet circuit in the U.S. But that would hardly impact Lochte should he decide to resume training for the 2020 games.As for the other three, Feigen has indicated he would retire after Rio and the 26-year-old is looking forward to attending law school somewhere in Texas. He made a $10,800 payment to a Rio charity that teaches martial arts to poor children after the incident, and his passport was returned. He left Brazil Friday night.Bentz and Conger stumbled just as they were getting started on the international stage, so the repercussions could linger longest with the Olympic rookies. They, along with Feigen, swam in preliminary heats, and earned gold medals when their teammates won relays in the finals.They returned home to the U.S. Friday.Bentz will be a 20-year-old junior majoring in business at Georgia this fall and Conger will be a 21-year-old senior majoring in corporate communication at Texas. They remain amateurs and presumably will continue their NCAA careers with their respective programs, which also could hand out punishment.What may take longer for everyone to forget is how the four stole the spotlight.While we are thankful our athletes are safe, we do not condone the lapse in judgment and conduct that led us to this point, USA Swimming executive director Chuck Wielgus said. It is not representative of what is expected as Olympians, as Americans, as swimmers and as individuals.---AP Retail Writer Anne DInnocenzio in New York and AP Sports Writer Stephen Wilson in Rio de Janeiro contributed to this report. ' ' '