Ricky Rubio vs. Jimmer Fredette: Which NBA Rookie Will Have a Brighter Career?

There are two rookies who have been hyped but that have also been heavily criticized. Neither was considered as a "surefire" pro by most. In fact both were mentioned by many as being surefire busts.

Jimmer Fredette and Ricky Rubio are two very exciting players for very different reasons. Which one has the brighter NBA future? We'll look at what the players offer, side by side and then determine which one will be the bigger star. 

Fredette's Scoring or Rubio's Passing

It wouldn't really be productive to compare scoring or passing because one is a shooting guard and one is a point guard. The question here is which is better at what they do best.

Fredette is a shooter who has shown the ability to score from just about anywhere. He was one of the better college shooters in recent memory. He's got a shot.

Rubio on the other hand is a remarkable passer. He is a generational talent when it comes to being ale to see players and get them the ball. He has that Nash/Maravich-type ability to simply make every player on his team better.

While Fredette is a good scorer, Rubio is a generational passer. Rubio wins here because he simply has the greater upside. 

Advantage: Rubio 

Fredette's Passing or Rubio's Scoring

What about the secondary skill set, Fredette's passing and ball handling compared to Rubio's scoring ability?

While early on Rubio looks like more of a scorer than was expected, it's hard to believe that suddenly he's become a real shooting threat. Even what he's shown is not that remarkable, averaging 11.7 points per 36 minutes.

Meanwhile, Fredette's assists per 36 minutes is at 3.6. He's a pretty solid ball handler and has shown the ability to move well in traffic. Only 29 percent of his field goals have been assisted. 

Overall the secondary skill set advantage has to go to Fredette. In fact, Fredette has been playing more of his minutes at point guard than at shooting guard. Granted, he plays better at shooting guard, but that he can play either position suggests his secondary skill set is better than Rubio's. 

Advantage: Fredette

Rebounding

Ricky Rubio is 6'4" and has a 6'9" wingspan. Fredette by comparison is 6'2" with a 6'4.5" wingspan. Both guards have a better vertical than you might expect. 

Rubio has used his incredible length and awareness of the ball (along with his placement on the court) to be a much better rebounder than Fredette. When you're a guard, it's not so much about height or jumping ability as it is about quickness, length and court awareness. Rubio is a lot like Rajon Rondo, one of the best rebounding point guards in the game in that regard. 

Rubio has grabbed 5.1 boards on average per 36 minutes compared to Fredette's 1.8, and he's competing with Kevin Love. He wins this one in a runaway. 

Advantage: Rubio

Defense

With defense there just isn't enough to go on to really say much. It's more about potential at this point than anything else, but the video above shows why Rubio has an edge here. His combination of length, speed and awareness makes him a potential defensive monster. 

Fredette was often criticized for his lack of defense in college. His advocates defended him by saying, fairly, that he was not only not expected to play defense, but even coached not to waste his energy on that end of the floor. 

It remains to be seen whether he can play it, but with his lack of size he'll be exploited often. It's hard to ever see Fredette as being anything better than an average defender, and that's being generous. 

Advantage: Rubio

Final Determination

While Fredette has a nice upside and should prove his doubters wrong by having a solid career as a role player, it's hard to see him being much more than that. At best he would make an All-Star Game, but even that is hard to believe. 

Ricky Rubio has the potential to be that generational passer in the line of Steve Nash and "Pistol" Pete Maravich. His combination of vision, speed and awareness has him having anywhere from All-Star to Hall of Fame potential. 

Bear in mind the operative word here is potential. Obviously I'm not arguing he's there yet, but there's a reason he's generating excitement around the league; he's an exciting player to watch. If he develops the way he can, this kid will be something truly special.