Word is that the Timberwolves’ betting chances are taking a hit with each day Ricky Rubio stays in Spain. Of course, they weren’t that high to begin with, but having Rubio in the fold would help a lot, both on the court and off, where they could raise the price per head of a ticket…just a little, though.

Now Rubio is saying that he wants to leave Spain regardless of whether he can pay the $8.2 million buyout that is in his contract with DKV Joventut or not. The Timberwolves can only contribute $500,000 to that buyout, leaving Rubio between a rock and a hard place. It’s doubtful he can return to Joventut after all that has gone on (think of the Dany Heatley saga currently going on the NHL), and it appears that Real Madrid and Barcelona are ready to step in and offer him a place to play if he doesn’t make it to the NBA.

(Side note: it’s funny to see Madrid and Barca’s names being mentioned with basketball instead of soccer, but we know Madrid has the money after they bought Cristiano Ronaldo for the price of a good-sized country)

So, will the kid really have an impact in your offshore sportsbook? Well, you can judge for yourself in the following video. I do know that I was impressed by what I saw of him in Beijing, and the Americans were very complimentary towards him. At least if he’s with Minnesota, I wouldn’t take watching paint dry over watching the ,Northbet favorite, Timberwolves. Still not making them one of my sports picks, though.