Preparing to return to action with Joventut Badalona in the Basketball Champions League and Spain’s Liga Endesa , Ricky Rubio revisited his professional debut at age 14 with plenty of promising youngsters also earning top-tier experience in recent weeks, including 13-year-old Mohamed Dabone with FC Barcelona.

“It almost seems like exploitation,” the 34-year-old point guard mentioned in a recent interview with Gigantes, “If you have the necessary quality at 13, you’ll probably be able to play at 16 or 17, too, or at 18.”

Early in the 2005-06 season, Rubio himself set a new record for the youngest player to play in the ACB, debuting with Badalona shortly before turning 15.

“There should be professionals, who already exist, to see at what stage to start playing,” he painted the pictur

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