Former Utah Jazz point guard Ricky Rubio expected to sign with Indiana Pacers

Ricky Rubio is expected to ditch Utah blue and gold for—er, um—Indiana blue and gold. The former Utah Jazz guard is widely expected to sign with the Indiana Pacers according to Tony Jones of The Athletic.

Ricky Rubio became a cult hero in Utah with his off the court community activism and his on the court heart and tenacity. While Ricky Rubio no longer fit into the Utah Jazz’s long term plans as they looked for pieces that more broadly fit their new core of Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert, Rubio helped the Utah Jazz move on from the Gordon Hayward-era and helped create Utah’s “The Strength of the Team is the Team” identity.

In Indiana, Ricky Rubio will serve as the Pacers’ pick and roll maestro with Domantas Sabonis and Myles Turner. Rubio could find himself in a similar situation with Utah with limited spacing while Indiana awaits the return of Victor Oladipo from injury. Spacing could become even more scarce if Utah is able to pry away Bojan Bogdanovic from the Pacers in free agency.

Ricky Rubio deserves all the success in the Eastern Conference. He brought Utah a lot of success, a lot of mentorship, and a lot of heart. He—and his beautiful locks of hair—will be missed. As someone who lived in Indiana, I think he’s going to like it there. Good basketball town, good basketball fans, and amazing opportunities to help out in the community. Pacers fans will love his grit and tenacity.