Rudy Gobert Rumors | Hoops Rumors

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.

Northwest Notes: Juzang, Sexton, Gobert, Porter Jr.

November 22nd, 2022 at 7:53pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Jazz rookie guard Johnny Juzang has a Grade 3 sprain in his right wrist, according to a team press release. An MRI revealed the extent of the injury, which he suffered while playing with the G League Salt Lake City Stars against the Ignite on Friday. Juzang, who is on a two-way contract, will be reevaluated in 10-to-14 days. He’s averaging 13.4 points and 4.4 rebounds in 28.6 minutes with the Stars.

We have more from the Northwest Division:

Collin Sexton struggled trying to replace injured Mike Conley in the Jazz’s starting lineup but the team hopes he’ll become more than just a sixth man, Tony Jones of The Athletic notes. Sexton is in the first year of a four-year, $70.95MM contract from the sign-and-trade deal made with Cleveland. The Jazz are hoping he’ll eventually find the right balance between being an aggressive scorer and a floor leader. Sexton had 10 points and just one assist in 28 minutes against the Clippers on Monday.
Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert wants to hear more supportive, rather than fickle, fans in the home crowd, Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic writes. Minnesota has won four straight games, but has heard plenty of boos from the home crowd, including during Monday’s win over Miami. “I just don’t appreciate people that come in to boo your team,” said Gobert, the team’s biggest offseason acquisition. “When you’re a fan, you’ve got to support your team in the tough or the good moments. There’s no team in NBA history that only had good moments, so if you’re not going to support us in the tough moments, just stay home.”
Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. has come to the realization that he needs to do the dirty work to live up to his contract, Tim Bontemps of ESPN writes. “Offense for me should be on autopilot,” Porter said. “I should be focused on the intangibles, the defense, the rebounding, the dirty work. Then that just involves you in the game. If you’re struggling on offense and you’re also not rebounding or playing defense, then it’s like, ‘Why is he out there right now?'” Porter signed a five-year, max extension in September 2021.

Northwest Notes: Grant, Gobert, Forbes, MPJ

November 20th, 2022 at 9:18pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Trail Blazers power forward Jerami Grant has once again elevated his play during his first season in Portland, potentially to an All-Star level, opines Aaron Fentress of The Oregonian.

The 6’8″ forward out of Syracuse is averaging 19.7 PPG on .480/.482/.750 shooting, while also contributing 4.7 RPG, 2.5 APG, 0.9 BPG and 0.8 SPG. Beyond the stats, Fentress notes that Grant is a versatile defender, capable of guarding at least four positions.

“Just getting started,” Grant said of his run with the Trail Blazers. “I think it’s going the right way, though. Winning a lot of games… You get less attention [with All-Star point guard Damian Lillard as the focal point of opposing defenses]… You’re able to go one-on-one. You’re able to make plays and pick your spots.”

“There’s so many really good players in the league that it’s hard to be an All-Star,” Lillard said. “So, for him it’s like whether he’s actually on an All-Star team or makes the All-Star team, or not, he’s that caliber player. So, I think we definitely got that guy that we were looking for at that position.”

There’s more out of the Northwest Division:

The addition of three-time Defensive Player of the Year center Rudy Gobert to the Timberwolves seems to have somewhat disrupted the offensive output of talented third-year shooting guard Anthony Edwards, notes Tim MacMahon of ESPN in an in-depth piece. Having Gobert manning the middle has cramped Minnesota’s floor spacing, as point guard D’Angelo Russell acknowledged. “It’s our main thing on offense we’re trying to figure out,” Russell told MacMahon. “Obviously, you see us running into each other, trying to back door and might run into a guy. It’s just little things like that that aren’t in sync right now. It’s kind of hard to find rhythm or flow.”
Timberwolves backup swingman Bryn Forbes is bringing positive energy to the team despite not being a regular part of the rotation, writes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. “That’s where I see a big role for me,” Forbes said. “Being encouraging, bringing the energy. Giving that off instead of having a bad attitude or this, that or the other.” Minnesota signed the 29-year-old vet in free agency this summer for his floor-spacing abilities, but he’s off to a slow start this season, averaging 3.3 PPG on 31% shooting from the floor, including 28.6% shooting from the three-point line on 1.8 attempts per game.
Nuggets small forward Michael Porter Jr. has been having trouble connecting on his shots over the past two games, writes Mike Singer of The Denver Post. Porter has scored a combined 15 total points on 5-of-23 shooting from the field. “We need Michael,” head coach Michael Malone said. “While [MVP center Nikola Jokic] is not here, we have to find ways to try to get Michael some easy ones, and I think Michael’s gotta help himself at the same time. … Make or miss, continue to play hard, compete and fight.”

Wolves Notes: Russell, Gobert, Prince, Edwards

November 9th, 2022 at 11:00pm CST by Arthur Hill

The trade that brought D’Angelo Russell to the Timberwolves has turned into a huge mistake, contends Jim Souhan of The Star Tribune. Minnesota was looking for more size and scoring in its backcourt when it sent Andrew Wiggins and a pair of draft picks — one of which became Jonathan Kuminga — to Golden State in exchange for Russell and two other players at the 2020 trade deadline. Wiggins wound up as a vital cog in the Warriors’ title team, while Russell continues to frustrate Wolves fans, Souhan states.

The latest embarrassing incident came in the first half of tonight’s loss to the Suns when Russell didn’t realize he was supposed to be on the court. Minnesota played a four-on-five possession that resulted in a Phoenix three-pointer. Souhan notes that Russell came into the game ranked 211th overall in Player Efficiency Rating and 42nd among point guards in a 30-team league.

After being benched in the playoff series against Memphis, Russell hasn’t looked any different this season, according to Souhan. He observes that the Wolves often look uncertain on the court, which shouldn’t happen to a team with a veteran point guard.

There’s more from Minnesota:

The Wolves are still working out a role on offense for Rudy Gobert, who returned tonight after missing two games while in the health and safety protocols, writes Chris Hine of The Star Tribune. Gobert’s new teammates, particularly Karl-Anthony Towns, have been trying to make sure he gets enough touches. “The guys have been great looking for me, especially KAT,” Gobert said. “I can tell he’s been doing a lot of effort hitting me on the duck-ins, hitting me on the lobs. I think that’s the way we’re going to play if we want to be a great offensive team, be able to space for each other, move the ball, have the ball not stick.”
Veteran forward Taurean Prince has become a locker room leader for the Wolves and he credits the influence of former teammate Patrick Beverley, particularly in film sessions, Hine adds. “He really taught me how to break down film and really process it quicker,” Prince said. “That’s helped me be in more of the right spots defensively. So I appreciate him for that. Now I’m also able to … put it in a way to where other guys understand it as well, and they’re maybe thinking two or three steps ahead.”
After Monday’s loss to the Knicks, Anthony Edwards expressed concerns that the Wolves are getting a reputation for being soft, Hine states in a separate story. “It’s hard, man,” Edwards said. “I don’t know, man. We’re going to try to figure it out, because that’s what it looks like right now. That’s what teams are saying, from the looks of it. They’re coming out like, ‘We’re going to punk them.’ That’s what’s going on.”