Timberwolves at Suns
THE STORY: The Suns' Steve Nash will be the only marquee point guard on the court Monday in Phoenix after the Minnesota Timberwolves lost flashy rookie Ricky Rubio to a season-ending knee injury Friday. Rubio was diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee, a crushing blow for the Timberwolves after the impact the Spaniard was making. Nash delivered 15 assists against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday as Phoenix won for the seventh time in nine games.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, FS North (Timberwolves), FS Arizona (Suns)
ABOUT THE TIMBERWOLVES (21-21): Minnesota showed how much it will miss Rubio by losing to the lowly New Orleans Hornets on Saturday. The Timberwolves committed 17 turnovers. Rubio was averaging 10.6 points and 8.2 assists and has revitalized the struggling franchise with unselfish play and a galvanizing personality. “He was having such a great year,” Minnesota coach Rick Adelman said. “He had such a great influence on our team and the way our team was playing and I think the league. It’s too bad any time you see a young player go down like that with an injury like that.”
ABOUT THE SUNS (19-21): Nash matched a season-high with 17 assists in his first matchup with Rubio on March 1 when the Minnesota rookie had only two. The victory against the Grizzlies marked Nash’s third consecutive double-double and his 19th of the season, the most of any NBA guard. Nash has 46 assists against only 10 turnovers over his last four games. Nash leads the league with 11.0 assists per game and is averaging 13.6 points.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The Suns have won the last nine meetings, including a 104-95 home win on March 1.
2. Timberwolves forward Kevin Love has 14 30-point outings to tie the club single-season record set by Tony Campbell in 1989-90.
3. Phoenix has won five straight home games and trailed by double digits in each of them.