Rudy Gobert has managed to make heads turn right from his first game with the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he beat one of the franchise's all-time records.
Rudy Gobert had a monster double-double to lead the Timberwolves to a big 115-108 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in their season opener.
| Player of the Game | |
|
EFF
35
|
| Rudy Gobert | |
| Points | 23 |
| Accuracy | 10-15 |
| Rebounds | 16 |
| Assists | 2 |
He scored 23 points and grabbed 16 rebounds to power Minnesota, especially in a night when Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards struggled to get anything going offensively.
Even more amazing, Gobert made 10 of his 15 shots. His 16 boards is also the most rebounds a player made in their Timberwolves debut, breaking the mark set by Al Jefferson back in the 2007-8 season, per Justin Kubatko of Basketball Reference.
The Frenchman was the best player of the game, and he didn't just put dunks and baskets on offensive rebounds. We even saw him register a basket at the buzzer with his foot on the 3-point line after a steal.
"His impact has been solid across the board. And of course near the circle," summarized Chris Finch, Wolves' coach. In the 4th quarter, Rudy Gobert went into 'bullying' mode, covering all angles near Minnesota' basket.
"It's really underrated, and I consider those kinds of actions to be dunks," testified D'Angelo Russell.
Same feeling with Anthony Edwards, who was amazed by the trajectories of the Thunder players' shots.
"Guys don't just go lay-up," he said. "They make floaters or they stop further and shoot. I've even seen guys attempt super high layups. That's crazy."
As for Gobert, he could not imagine a better start in front of his new audience. He was eagerly awaited and he responded.
"We play in an unselfish way and I find that we had a lot of open shots tonight without necessarily making them," Gobert said.
"If we keep playing like this, we will be very good. It's going to get better… It takes time, but I really like the way guys were looking for each other. With this mindset, we are heading in the right direction."
Gobert has been trying to carve out a common code with Karl-Anthony Towns. The Wolves' leader has mainly sought to turn the lights on his new teammate.
"KAT is amazing! He's always looking for me," the French big man stressed.
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