Ricky Rubio, through a statement published by the Spanish Basketball Federation, has announced that he is taking a “break” in his professional activity to take care of his mental health, so the international will not be with the team in the next World Cup.
«I have decided to stop my professional activity to take care of my mental health. I want to thank all the support I have received from the FEB to understand my decision. Today #LaFamilia makes more sense than ever. Thank you. I would ask that my privacy be respected to be able to face these moments and to be able to give more information when the time is right, “says Ricky in his statement.
The participation of the Cleveland Cavaliers player, MVP of the last World Cup, in the World Cup in the Philippines, which begins on August 25, is ruled out. Ricky Rubio had returned to the national team for the first time in the last two seasons after overcoming a serious knee injury.
Rubio was in the concentration of the Spanish team, but yesterday he did not play the friendly match against Venezuela in Madrid. In addition to the point guard, other veterans such as Willy Hernangómez, Sergio Llull, Álex Abrines and Rudy Fernández did not take to the field either). Ricky had been absent from the last training session on Thursday with permission from the club and yesterday he wasn’t even at the WiZink Center.
Scariolo, Pau Gasol, cadlerón… all with Ricky
With the loss of Ricky Rubio, a complicated situation is presented for the coach Sergio Scariolo to look for a replacement. Right now, he has Alberto Díaz and Sergio Llull in the point guard position and in recent days the young Juan Núñez (19 years old) has been training with the national team.
Precisely the Spanish coach Sergio Scariolo wanted to send a message of encouragement to the player through social networks: «In #LaFamilia, people have always come before the results. All my love and support for Ricky, and my admiration for his transparency and through it his ability, once again, to lead by example ».
The two-time NBA champion and former teammate Pau Gasol also wanted to show his full support. «Always on your team, Ricky. We are all with you », he wrote to the point guard of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Another point guard, already retired, like José Manuel Calderón, wanted to send his encouragement to his former teammate. «We have known each other for many years and you know what I think of you. Now more than ever. I love you very much. We are with you. Good luck,” he wrote.
Willy Hernangómez, a current teammate in the national team and with whom he has been preparing for the World Cup in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia these weeks, also sent his message of support: “Never too high, never too low… RR”.
When his mother died: “I went through a depression”
It is not the first time that Ricky Rubio confesses that he has gone through bad moments of mental health. In May 2016, when his mother, Tona Vives, died of lung cancer. the player confessed that he had “been through a depression.” For most of the year after his death, he lived angry. He blamed many things. He blamed basketball. He blamed the people around me for how I felt. I blamed everything. I went through a depression”, Ricky Rubio confessed in an article in ‘The Players tribune’ in 2019.
“The first season after she died, I would wake up and think about calling her. She made me want to break my phone”
Rubio recalled his habit of calling his mother on FaceTime every morning from Minnesota: “The first season after she died, I would wake up and think about calling her. She made me want to break my phone. But I couldn’t delete her number. I even texted him sometimes. I still do it. For a while, I felt like she was driving me crazy, like she was talking to myself ».
A tattoo in honor of his mother
The player then decided to ask for help to get out of the well into which he had sunk: «I did not know how to solve it alone. I learned that when I finally got help, when I went to talk to a therapist.” “I started to see basketball differently. I saw life differently. Nothing seemed as serious as it used to be. As if we were just playing a game, and sometimes it was a relief to go out and play and forget about everything », he added in the article.
In fact, the player wears his most special tattoo on his right arm, along his biceps and part of his forearm: a lioness accompanied by her cub, which is complemented by a rose and the phrase “With you went so much of me» (With you so much of me left). A beautiful tribute to his mother.
2023-08-05 13:04:24
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