Rudy Gobert

Western Notes: Poeltl, Sabonis, Booker, Gobert

December 27th, 2022 at 5:36pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Spurs center Jakob Poeltl has continued to play limited minutes since returning from a seven-game absence due to a bone bruise in his right knee, Jeff McDonald of the San Antonio Express-News notes.

Poeltl hasn’t played more than 24 minutes in five games since suiting up again. He was extremely effective on Monday against Utah, contributing 16 points, nine rebounds, four blocks and two steals during that time frame in the Spurs’ victory.

“It’s just about finding a rhythm again, getting back in shape,” said Poeltl, an unrestricted free agent next summer who could get dealt prior to the trade deadline if the Spurs find the right offer.

We have more Western Conference news:

Kings big man Domantas Sabonis isn’t considering surgery for the fracture in his right thumb, James Ham of The Kings Beat tweets. He hopes to return to action soon and will be reassessed regularly, depending on effectiveness and pain levels. De’Aaron Fox said it will difficult to go without Sabonis if he needs to miss a stretch of games, Ham adds in another tweet. “It’s going to take everybody, it’s going to take a village to make up for the production that’s going to be missing from him,” Fox said.
Suns star Devin Booker returned to Phoenix after Sunday’s Christmas game for further evaluation after reaggravating a groin injury during the first quarter of Phoenix’s loss at Denver, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reports. Phoenix is currently on a six-game road trip. Booker had missed three games before his early departure against the Nuggets.
Despite the trade for Rudy Gobert, rebounding remains a major issue for the Timberwolves, Chris Hine of the Star Tribune writes. Minnesota began the week 25th in the league in defensive rebounding percentage. Coach Chris Finch has said the problem is mainly due to a lack of effort from their wings and guards, rather than Gobert and the other bigs.

Northwest Notes: Lillard, SGA, Gobert, Edwards, Markkanen

December 23rd, 2022 at 11:19pm CST by Rory Maher

Point guard Damian Lillard has spent his entire career with the Trail Blazers, and despite publicly stating multiple times that he intends to spend the rest of his career in Portland, his name has been featured in trade rumors off and on for years. Lillard recently gave some advice to Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has been the subject of similar speculation.

“The grass is not always greener on the other side,” Lillard said, according to Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman.

“You never know what it’s going to look like or how the next team might view you, especially when you’ve had some injuries like he’s had,” Lillard continued. “You just don’t know. Also I would tell him a lot of these people that are saying ‘free him’ and all of these things or whatever, they are not the people that are going to have to live with the consequences if it doesn’t work out. They’re not gonna ever have to walk in his shoes.”

Lillard also complimented Gilgeous-Alexander’s excellent start to the 2022/23 season, per Mussatto.

“He’s coming into his own,” Lillard said. “I can remember when I was younger and I became the leader of a team. … I see that he’s in that stage. He’s trying to show what he can do — almost like a coming out party for him.

“He’s having a great season. He’s playing confident, he’s playing well for the team and it’s fun to watch, just not when it happens against us.”

Here’s more from the Northwest:

The Timberwolves continue to have an up-and-down season. They won three straight with Rudy Gobert sidelined with an ankle injury (though they were playing three similarly inconsistent opponents in the Thunder, Mavs and Bulls), and have now dropped two straight with him back. Still, Gobert says he’s pleased with the team’s effort, per Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. “I’m really happy about the way we come in every day working, putting in the extra work,” he said. “And then when it’s game time, I’m really happy with the physicality, the competitiveness. I think that’s what’s going to take us as far as we can go.”
Anthony Edwards has shown improvement as a play-maker for the Timberwolves, and La Velle E. Neal III of The Star Tribune believes the 21-year-old has higher upside in that role than Karl-Anthony Towns. Edwards still needs to find more consistency, but it would be a good thing if Edwards becomes the face of the franchise sooner rather than later, according to Neal.
Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen has a strong case to become a first-time All-Star, writes Sarah Todd of The Deseret News. He says been striving to achieve that goal for years. “I’ve said this publicly before, but absolutely it has always been my personal goal. Obviously I’ve got team goals and I’m always gonna push those first, but like at an individual level that’s always been my goal. Not just to be one of the guys in the league, I want to make it to the top,” Markkanen said. Through 32 games (33.8 MPG), he’s averaging a career-high 22.8 PPG, along with 8.1 RPG and 2.1 APG. He’s also posting career-best marks from the field (53.3%) and from three-point range (43.8%).

Donovan Mitchell Discusses Trade To Cavs, Gobert Relationship, More

December 20th, 2022 at 11:28am CST by Luke Adams

Facing his former team for the first time since being traded from the Jazz to the Cavaliers over the offseason, Donovan Mitchell scored a team-high 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting on Monday, leading the Cavs to a 23-point victory.

Utah’s leading scorer on the night, with 24 points, was forward Lauri Markkanen, who was traded by Cleveland in the Mitchell blockbuster. Mitchell’s and Markkanen’s strong performances were the latest indication that the deal seems to be working out pretty well for both teams so far.

“It looks a like a win-win to me, and you love to see something like that,” Mitchell said, per Tony Jones of The Athletic. “It’s good to see Lauri doing his thing and the Jazz playing well. I’m happy in Cleveland, so sometimes, these kinds of things work out for the best.”

As Kelsey Russo of The Athletic writes, besides providing the Cavaliers with some much-needed scoring punch on the court, Mitchell has impressed his new teammates and coaches in Cleveland with his character off the court.

“I would love people to understand what type of human being he is,” head coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “He’s an unbelievable person to be around every day. Ups, downs, roundabouts, eight-game winning streak, five-game losing streak, he never changed. And he was always uplifting, he was always positive, and he’s always thinking about other people first, and to me, that’s more important than all this put the ball in a basket stuff. Because those are the types of people you want to surround yourself with, and those are the types of people, and you see it, his teammates want to play with him and play for him because he’s that type of person.”

Before he and the Cavs hosted the Jazz on Monday, Mitchell spoke to Marc J. Spears of Andscape about being traded, the differences between Cleveland and Utah, the Cavs’ potential ceiling, and several other topics. The Q&A, which includes Mitchell’s explanation for why his time in Salt Lake City was sometimes “draining” off the court, is worth checking out in full, but here are a few of the highlights:

On his relationship with former Jazz co-star Rudy Gobert:

“Honestly, basketball just didn’t work. We live in such a world where it has to be really negative. Basketball just didn’t work. We didn’t see eye to eye. We wanted to both win, but we wanted to do it two different ways. It didn’t work. But as far as him and I go as people, I don’t hate him, and he doesn’t hate me. I wouldn’t say we’re the best of friends, but we’re not at the point where it’s like, I can’t stand him. … There’s no hatred. There’s no ill will towards any of that. Basketball just didn’t work out. It happens.

“… Honestly, it really started with COVID. Everything we did up to that point was under microscope to the point where we were getting evaluated on how many times we threw the ball (to each other). And that’s unfortunate, but it’s the reality of it. And it just didn’t work. I wish it did. I wish we went farther. We had the opportunity, but we didn’t. And we’re both in different spots now. But I want to wish him the best and I know he feels the same way.”

On when he realized the end was near in Utah:

“Realistically when we lost (to the Mavs in last season’s playoffs). You just felt it early. I didn’t think it would be this immediate. I didn’t think it would be everything. But I knew something was going to change this summer. I didn’t know what. And then with (head coach) Quin (Snyder) leaving I was like, ‘Oh, OK.’ And then Rudy getting traded, it’s like, ‘All right, let’s go.'”

On whether he thinks the Jazz should retire his No. 45 jersey:

“I don’t think I did enough. I hold myself to a high standard. Now, other people may feel that it should. I’d be happy and forever grateful, honored and blessed for sure for that to happen. But I don’t think I’ve done enough in five years to have my jersey up there with Karl (Malone), John (Stockton), Pistol Pete (Maravich), and Darrell Griffith. I got a long way in my career to go to continue to be better.”

Northwest Notes: Gobert, Conley, Russell, Thunder

December 10th, 2022 at 9:49pm CST by Arthur Hill

Rudy Gobert got a warm reception in his return to Utah Friday night, but things turned hostile after he dropped in a late layup with the game already decided, writes Eric Walden of The Salt Lake Tribune. The Timberwolves held an eight-point lead with 12 seconds left to play as the Jazz decided to trap on defense. Minnesota passed the ball to Gobert, who scored with 2.4 seconds left.

After the final buzzer, Malik Beasley, who was sent to Utah in the Gobert trade, began yelling at Gobert and accused him of violating “one of the unwritten rules of basketball,” according to Walden. Jarred Vanderbilt, who was also in the deal, walked up to Gobert and shoved him.

Gobert was upset that the skirmish marred his night, which included a tribute video commemorating his nine seasons with the Jazz.

“I don’t know what it was. But I’ve been taught to play basketball until the last second,” Gobert told reporters. “For me, there was never any intent to disrespect anybody. So these guys that stepped in front of me — you’re not going to do anything anyway. I didn’t get to shake hands with my guys, so it kind of killed my moment a little bit. But it is what it is — some guys just want attention.”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Jazz guard Mike Conley can understand what Gobert was feeling heading into Friday’s game because he went through the same experience when he returned to Memphis, Walden adds. “You just gotta try your best to do your job, but at the same time enjoy this moment,” Conley said, “because you only get to do this situation one time, where you get to come back and play against your team that you did so much for.”
A hot-shooting night in Cleveland about a month ago helped Timberwolves guard D’Angelo Russell turn his season around, per Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. Russell said that before that game, in which he made 11-of-13 shots from the field, he was taking “the wrong approach” to his duties with the team. “I was trying to be too focused on being a point guard instead of a basketball player,” he said. “… I kind of just play basketball freely and have fun. I pass the ball, so I’m labeled as a point guard. But just being a full, all-around basketball player, [I was] switching my approach to that.”
Asked about Darius Bazley possibly re-entering the rotation, Thunder coach Mark Daigneault responded with a general answer, tweets Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. “We’re trying to help every guy understand their individual style of play that maximizes their strength and maximizes their ability to impact the team,” Daigneault said. “I would say that’s basically the template, the blueprint for every guy.”

Western Notes: SGA, Gobert Trade, Daniels, J. Green

December 9th, 2022 at 10:57pm CST by Rory Maher

Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is having an outstanding season in 2022/23, and looks destined for his first All-Star and All-NBA appearances. He’s third in the league in scoring at 31.1 PPG, and is also averaging 4.7 RPG, 6.0 APG, 1.7 SPG and 1.1 BPG on .500/.324/.926 shooting through 23 games (35.7 MPG).

In a lengthy profile on Gilgeous-Alexander’s emergence as a star, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman (subscriber link) writes that, despite external speculation that the 24-year-old might grow impatient with the Thunder’s rebuild and eventually seek a trade, there’s no sense of that happening within the organization. Gilgeous-Alexander says he has a lot of faith in GM Sam Presti.

“It’s always easy to trust someone when they haven’t given you a reason not to trust them,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “It’s always easier to trust someone when they tell you something and it happens. And that’s been my relationship with Sam so far.

“Everything he’s told me has happened, and he’s never lied to me … It’s easy to work — well, it’s crazy that basketball is work — but it’s easier to play basketball and put your all into every day and believe in the future when it’s a guy like that running the show.”

Here’s more from the West:

Prior to the Timberwolves‘ matchup with the Jazz on Friday, which the Wolves won 118-108 to move to 13-12, Michael Rand of The Star Tribune wrote an article about whether Minnesota would still make the Rudy Gobert deal right now, with the knowledge that the start to the season would be uneven. He believes the answer is “probably,” because while there have definitely been bumps along the way, Gobert has played better of late and he’s starting to develop some chemistry with teammates.
Dyson Daniels, the No. 8 overall pick in June’s draft, has emerged as an immediate contributor to the West’s No. 1 seed due to his strong defense, writes William Guillory of The Athletic. The 19-year-old Pelicans guard says he welcomes the challenge of guarding top players. “I like when people go at me. I love to accept that challenge,” Daniels said. “I want to show them that I’m here for a reason and I can defend. … Guys always want to go at the rookie, and I’m fine with that. It only makes me better.”
Rockets guard Jalen Green, last year’s No. 2 overall pick, has had a bit of an up-and-down second season thus far, which is to be expected for a young player on a rebuilding club. According to Kelly Iko of The Athletic, Green focuses on big-picture growth and has proven to be a sponge when it comes to soaking up information and watching film.

Timberwolves Notes: Reid, Garza, Gobert

December 8th, 2022 at 9:22pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Timberwolves center Naz Reid is adjusting to life backing up Minnesota’s All-NBA frontcourt of Karl-Anthony Towns and Rudy Gobert, writes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. That has meant playing power forward in addition to center.

“Guarding different players and position,” Reid said of the change. “It’s very different actually.”

With Towns sidelined indefinitely due to a right calf injury, the 6’9″ Reid will get additional rotation minutes as a reserve. He should see more time at the five rather than the four until Towns is back.

“I wouldn’t say I can’t play the four… it’s a big role I’m going to be in within the next couple weeks,” Reid said. “I’m excited to be in that role and excited to help our team.”

The fourth-year big man out of LSU is averaging 7.8 PPG on 52.8% shooting from the floor, along with 3.7 RPG and 0.9 BPG, across just 14.3 MPG.

There’s more out of Minnesota:

Two-way Timberwolves big man Luka Garza has recently shown out in his play for the team’s NBAGL affiliate, the Iowa Wolves. Hines wonders in another piece if the 6’11” center/forward can become a part of Minnesota’s future. Garza’s 29.8 PPG, on 62.8% shooting, leads the entire NBA G League, and he has also put up 9.2 RPG and 3.2 APG. “I love this system that we play with here,” Garza said of the coordinated approach of both the Iowa and Minnesota franchises. “We play a lot through the bigs, Karl and Rudy. It’s very evident and it’s kind of the same thing with me down there. We’re not only put in positions to score but make decisions and get guys involved.” Hine notes that Garza could get additional time at the NBA level with Towns unavailable.
Rudy Gobert‘s new teammates continue to learn about how best to fit in with his game, Hines writes in another Star Tribune story. That extends to how Gobert feels about help coverage around the basket — he is not a fan. “When someone drives on me, unless I fall down, which doesn’t happen, just let me make a play,” Gobert said. “Then if they score, I’ll take the blame.”
Following a largely successful nine-season run with the Jazz, Gobert was flipped to Minnesota in the offseason. Now, he’s gearing up for his first game in Utah as an opposing player on Friday, Hine writes. “I just want to enjoy the moment,” Gobert said. “There’s a lot of people that I have a lot of love for over there. There’s a lot of great memories. … I just want to enjoy the moment and, of course, get a win.” Gobert won three Defensive Player of the Year awards and made three All-Star teams during his time with the Jazz, though his teams failed to advance beyond the second round of the playoffs.

Tim Connelly: Wolves Expected “Growing Pains” With Rudy Gobert Trade

December 7th, 2022 at 5:24pm CST by Arthur Hill

President of basketball operations Tim Connelly admits the Rudy Gobert trade hasn’t been an immediate success for the Timberwolves, but he never expected it to be, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Connelly explains that Minnesota made the deal with Utah with the understanding that it would take time to adjust to a unique player like Gobert.

“We didn’t have expectations it was initially going to hit the ground running. We kind of expected a lot of growing pains there,” Connelly said. “So I think, individually, Rudy’s been fantastic. When we’re fully healthy, we’ve got to figure out how to most effectively employ all those guys. It’s a win-loss league. If we had three or four more wins right now, it would be an emphatic positive.”

Instead, the Wolves are in 11th place in the West at 11-12 and have rarely looked like the energetic team that raised expectations in last season’s playoffs. Gobert is averaging 11.2 PPG, his lowest scoring numbers in seven years, and his rebounding is down to 11.4 per game after he led the league last season at 14.7. Most alarming is that he’s averaging just 1.3 blocks per night, about half of what he did in his best seasons in Utah, after being brought to Minnesota as a rim protector.

Connelly believes the statistical decline has a lot to do with getting used to a new set of teammates, and he expressed confidence that Gobert will eventually bounce back. He also stressed that the team’s perimeter players have to do a better job of clogging the lane and not relying so much on Gobert.

“There’s not a rim protector in the world who can just face live-ball dribbles all game,” Connelly said. “It’s not going to work. We have had moments of that where, ‘Hey Rudy’s back there so I can play olé defense.’”

Connelly paid a high price to acquire Gobert, so he understands why fans are impatient. The Wolves parted with three players who were instrumental to last season’s success — Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt and Patrick Beverley — along with a collection of draft picks that stretch all the way to 2029.

One of the issues raised by those who questioned the trade was how Gobert would fit alongside Karl-Anthony Towns and whether having two big men on the court at the same time could be effective in today’s NBA. Krawczynski notes that Towns was adapting to Gobert as well as anyone before being sidelined with a calf strain. Towns has more assists to Gobert than anybody else on the team does, and his enthusiasm for making the pairing work is one reason that Connelly remains optimistic.

“We’re not going to bury our head in the sand and pretend it’s been flawless,” Connelly said. “We never expected that. When we made the trade, it wasn’t done without a lot of conversation, a lot of watching of tape.”

Northwest Notes: Russell, Gobert, Clarkson, Blazers

December 5th, 2022 at 8:35pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Timberwolves guard D’Angelo Russell has been fined $20K by the league for directing inappropriate language toward a game official, the league’s PR department tweets. The incident occurred toward the conclusion of the Timberwolves’ 135-128 loss to the Thunder on Saturday. Russell was ejected in the late going after receiving two technicals.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert was also ejected on Saturday, in that instance for tripping Thunder forward Kenrich Williams. “It was just frustration,” Gobert told Chris Hine of the Minneapolis Star Tribune (Twitter link). “Guys are going to talk. It’s a part of the game. Sometimes you can feel it’s disrespectful, but I got to be smarter than that. Penalizing my team, penalizing myself. So, just seems like for me, I got to be smarter.”
Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson has been fined $15K by the league, Andy Larsen of the Salt Lake Tribune tweets. Clarkson tossed his headband into the stands during the final seconds of Utah’s 116-111 loss to the Trail Blazers on Saturday.
Considering the Trail Blazers are above .500 despite losing star Damian Lillard for a stretch and playing 14 of their games on the road, coach Chauncey Billups is happy with the state of the team, Jason Quick of The Athletic writes. “We’re in a good spot,” he said. “We’ve been in a really tough stretch, maybe our toughest stretch of the season in terms of travel and games. We knew it was going to be a difficult stretch here, and that’s what it’s proven to be. But I think we are in a good spot.”

And-Ones: Embiid, French National Team, 2023 Draft, Henderson

December 2nd, 2022 at 10:48am CST by Luke Adams

A native of Cameroon, Sixers star Joel Embiid also has U.S. and French citizenship, meaning his choice of which country to represent in international play will have a major impact on what the field looks like at the 2024 Olympics. Teaming up with Rudy Gobert and Victor Wembanyama would give France the world’s best frontcourt and make Les Bleus a legitimate gold medal threat.

Speaking to Joe Vardon of The Athletic, Gobert was asked about the possibility of Embiid joining the French national team and said he’d welcome the addition of the MVP runner-up. However, Gobert’s answer wasn’t unequivocal, and he said he doesn’t plan to personally recruit Embiid.

“For me the most important thing is if his heart tells him to be a part of Team France,” Gobert told Vardon. “I want him to do it for the right reasons. As long as he understands that the French national team is different than the NBA. We have rules, we have things that we do. Sometimes we all have lunch and dinner together — it’s not everybody doing their own thing. These are two different teams.

“But I think the main thing for us, for him and for me is that I want to make sure that he does it from his heart. And if he does that, I think he would be an amazing addition for our team. … It has to come from him. You are either all in, or you’re not. You can’t just show up.”

Here are a few more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

The latest 2023 mock draft from ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Insider link) moves Alabama’s Brandon Miller up to No. 7 and Arkansas’ Anthony Black up to No. 11. Reece Beekman has also moved into the first round, with Givony observing that the Virgina guard’s defensive ability gives him a “very high floor.”
Beekman also earned a spot on John Hollinger’s list at The Athletic of 10 returning NCAA players who have impressed him as potential NBA prospects. Iowa’s Kris Murray, Illinois’ Terrence Shannon, and Xavier’s Colby Jones are among the other college standouts singled out by Hollinger.
Mirin Fader of The Ringer takes an in-depth look at the consensus No. 2 prospect in the 2023 draft class, profiling rising G League Ignite star Scoot Henderson.
The NBA is now allowing sovereign wealth funds to invest in its franchises as minority stakeholders. Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic explains exactly what that means and lays out why it might be risky, noting that the league could have to make decisions on sovereign wealth funds associated with autocratic countries.

Northwest Notes: Gobert, Prince, Brown, Wiggins

November 26th, 2022 at 9:53pm CST by Arthur Hill

Rudy Gobert understood that the Timberwolves‘ adjustment wouldn’t be easy after shaking up their roster to acquire him from Utah, writes Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Not only did Minnesota give up five players in the deal, the team committed to an entirely different style of play with Gobert clogging the middle and forming a modern-day Twin Towers alongside Karl-Anthony Towns.

Nineteen games into the season, Gobert’s concerns have been proven correct. The Wolves are a game above .500, but they’ve had some ugly losses along the way, including Friday’s at Charlotte, where it’s seemed like the pieces don’t really fit together.

“Each bad game, they’re going to be ready to talk. That’s great. We love it,” Gobert said before the season began. “That’s part of the process. Nothing great comes easy. If it was going to happen in one game, that wouldn’t be worth having. We gotta work hard and work every night to get better.”

After a 5-8 start, Minnesota had strung together five straight wins before Friday. But perimeter defenders have been relying too much on Gobert to bail them out after their man drives by, Krawczynski observes, and the chemistry between Gobert and D’Angelo Russell on the pick-and-roll remains a work in progress.

“Sometimes, you know, passes are tough. Sometimes I fumble it,” Gobert said. “Most of the time, I get it and something good happens. As long as we can keep that trust and I can try to put myself in the right spots for him to find me and whether it’s that pocket pass or that lob, any pass actually, just trusting me.”

There’s more from the Northwest Division:

Timberwolves forward Taurean Prince suffered a right shoulder subluxation during Wednesday’s game and could miss a week or two, tweets Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. Coach Chris Finch said Jordan McLaughlin is “more in the day-to-day category” with a left calf injury.
Bruce Brown continues to look like a major free agency bargain for the Nuggets, Mike Singer of The Denver Post notes. Brown posted his first career triple-double Wednesday to help Denver pull out a win despite the absence of four rotation players. “Some guys are in the foxhole with you, some guys, like they’ve got one foot in, one foot out,” Malone said. “Bruce is, he’s all the way in.”
Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins has the unusual distinction of five starts and five DNP-CDs already this season, per Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman. Coach Mark Daigneault explained that it’s a result of having so many young players to develop.

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