; Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio
Jan 17, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Minnesota Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio (9) tries to get past Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas (17) during the game at Air Canada Centre. Reuters

Beating the Oct. 31 deadline for contract extensions for their players in rookie deals, the Minnesota Timberwolves agreed to a four-year $56 million contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves which means that franchise will pay the Spanish point guard will earn $14M per season to make him the highest paid player in Minnesota’s current line-up.

The pay raise was not unexpected considering the team just lost previous franchise player Kevin Love to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2014 offseason. By locking down the 24-year-old Rubio in the next four years, the Timberwolves will have a young crew to develop moving forward.

“I was talking to my agents about an extension, my goal was staying here,” Rubio said via the league’s official website. “From the first moment I came here to Minnesota, I thought it was something special between me (and the fans)… I want to stay here for a long time.”

28-year-old center Nikola Pekovic is the second highest paid in the team at $12.1M per year and 26-years-old Thaddeus Young, who was acquired from the Philadelphia 76ers via a trade in the offseason, is earning $9.16M for third in the team. 19-year-old Andrew Wiggins, who was the centrepiece in the Kevin Love deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers, is on a rookie deal that pays him just above $5M.

Flip Saunders, Rubio’s head coach at Minnesota knows Rubio’s value to the squad and admitted Rubio’s shot-making is still an issue but that the Spanish PG is doing enough intangibles to deserve the huge contract.

“He’s been known as one of the best stealers in the league. I feel he has the opportunity to be one of the first or second-team all-defensive player this year,” Saunders said.

“He’s very competitive and works really hard. He’s mature. I think everyone sees that there’s been so much talk about his shot and his shot is improving. I look at things that he does do, not just things that he doesn’t.”

Rubio has career averages of 10.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 2.1 steals.

Is Ricky Rubio overpaid? Did the Minnesota Timberwolves make the correct decision in giving him a max extension?