Ingles praises the 'Bieber of Spain' Rubio

Ricky Rubio was the "Justin Bieber of Spain" as a teenager and will be a perfect fit for the Utah Jazz, according to Joe Ingles.

Rubio, 26, was traded to the Jazz by the Minnesota Timberwolves in June in exchange for a 2018 first-round pick.

The Spaniard spent six seasons in Minnesota, averaging 10.3 points, 8.5 assists and 4.2 rebounds per game.

Ingles, who reunites with Rubio after the pair spent a season together at Barcelona in the Euroleague in 2010-11, believes the guard will fit in well at the Jazz, as the Australian remembered how popular his team-mate was in his homeland.

"I think with Ricky, the way he passes the ball and plays defence are kind of our coach's two main things, so if you can play defence you can stay on the court and obviously we were first or second in passes per possession," Ingles told Omnisport.

"That's the way we play and Ricky fits both of those attributes that we've got as a group.

"We played together seven years ago, I think we were saying, in Barcelona – a long time ago now.

"I think he was 18 or 19 and I was early 20s, and he was like the Justin Bieber of Spain.

"So it was very entertaining for my first year in Europe, but he's a really good player, he'll help us a lot."